HoUinga: Corp. 
pH8.5 






The Ages of Pupils and Their Progress 
Through the Elementary Grades 

FIRST STEPS IN STATEWIDE EDUCATIONAL ACCOUNTING, 
SECOND PAPER. APRIL 1918 



BY W. A. AVERILL, A. B., CONSULTING OFFICE-ORGANIZER 
AND STATISTICIAN 

Formerly Inspector in Elementary Education, New York State Education 

Department, and Expert in School Investigation, New York 

Bureau of Municipal Research 

A hand-book showing the statistical technique, tabulation and 
graphic presentation of the salient features of Age- Progress 
problems in elementary schools. 

The first paper of this series of educational accounting reports 
was pubUshed in October 191 7 in order to have ready for distribution 
such returns from a request sent to the schools of the State in May 
19 1 7 as were compiled at the time of the 19 17 Convocation of The 
University of the State of New York. The limited edition of the 
first paper was soon exhausted and to meet the subsequent demand 
for copies, this second paper will contain the salient features of the 
first. 

For the study of age and progress conditions of elementary school 
pupils, the cities, villages and union free school districts of the State 
are divided into nine groups, the basis of which division is the size 
of the elementary school enrolment, reported in this case on May 21, 
19 17. The groups of communities are: 

6 cities enrolling over 5000 elementary pupils 

8 cities enrolling 3000 to 4999 elementary pupils 

7 cities and i village with 2000 to 2999 elementary pupils 
16 cities and 8 villages with 1000 to 1999 elementary pupils 

4 cities, 16 villages and 28 union free school districts with 500 to 999 elementary 

pupils 
3 villages and 61 union free school districts with 300 to 499 elementary pupils 
I village and 76 union free school districts with 200 to 299 elementary pupils 
153 union free school districts with 100 to 199 elementary pupils 
175 union free school districts with less than 100 elementary pupils 

563 communities reporting data, including 41 cities, 29 villages and 493 union 
free school districts. 



TTri..».,,..».ii'r^ 



u^ 



\\ 



<^5 



Table i 



Progress percentages of 286,207 pupils in 41 cities, 29 villages and 493 union 

free school districts 





PUPILS 


PER CENTS 




Rapid 


Normal 


Slow 


Total 


Rapid 


Normal 


Slow 


Total 


Less than lOO 


987 

I 078 

864 

1 271 

2 217 

3 123 
2 681 

4 483 
10 424 


6 724 
II 090 
II 574 
13 674 

17 566 

18 118 
10 937 
18 361 
66 375 


3 732 
6 183 

6 541 

7 104 
9 96s 
9 691 
6 071 

8 389 
26 984 


II 443 
18 351 

18 979 
22 049 

29 748 

30 932 

19 689 

31 233 
103 783 


8.62 
5.82 
456 

5-77 

7.3 

10.09 

i3-6i 

14-35 
10.04 


58. 76 

60.8 

61. 

62. 

59.3 

58.57 

55-5 

58.79 

63.96 


32.62 

33-352 

34.44 

32.23 

33-4 

31.33 

30.83 

26-86 

26. 


100 
100 


200- 299 


100 
100 




100 




100 




100 




100 


Over sooo 


100 


Total '. . . 


27 128 


174 419 


84 660 


286 207 


9.48 


60.94 


29-58 


100 




Figure i 

Each column represents 100 per cent of the entire enrolment in each group 
of school systems. The groups themselves vary in size but this variation is 
not shown in the figure which shows only the relative percentages of rapid, 
normal and slow-progress pupils in each group and not the actual number of 
pupils. Late reports received after figure was drawn reduce the slow progress in 
the second column to 34 per cent. 

The blank which was sent to the schools of the vState in May, 19 17, 
requesting the information on which the tables in this paper are based, 
called for the number of years of schooling assignable to the pupils 
in each grade and the number of pupils in each grade who 
had attended each different period of schooling. For example, the 
report in the fifth grade as sent out called for the number of pupils 
who had to their credit 4-A^ea^jpf»^hooling, 5 years of schooling, 6 

APR 28*-*i91i> 



years of schooling, etc. In the fifth grade those who reported only 

4 years of schooling were called rapid-progress pupils, those reporting 

5 years were called normal and those, who reported a total attendance 
of more than 5 years, including the school year ending June 19 17, 
were reported as slow-progress pupils. On this basis the tables in 
this pamphlet have been prepared, except where otherwise specified. 
Table i gives the total results for 286,207 pupils in 563 communities 
throughout the State. This figure does not represent the entire 
elementary school enrolment of the State, as New York City is 
omitted together with several of the smaller communities whose 
reports for various reasons could not be used. 

Note that these tables do not refer to overage but to progress alone. 
In this respect they are incomplete in that they present only one 
phase of retardation, namely the time-in-school factor, whereas the 
complete statement of the retardation situation requires along with 
this time factor, the age factor expressed in three subdivisions for 
underage, normal age and overage. 

A glance at the slow-progress percentages of table i shows that 
they are, as a whole, unusually low. They are in all probability 
about 4 per cent lower than the percentages which would be obtained 
by an analysis of the situation in which both age and time in school 
are considered, and compiled to show conditions either at the beginning 
or after the close of the school year. The figures were reported as 
of May 21, 19 1 7 and do not include in the slow-progress element 
those pupils who were not promoted in June 191 7. Pupils who 
left school prior to May 2 ist do not appear on the reports, which 
again tends to understate the slow-progress number. A third factor 
tending to reduce the stated amount of slow progress was the date 
of the collection of the data, late in the school year, at which time 
many communities were obliged to gather the figures hurriedly; 
it is probable that a portion of the time in school for some of the 
pupils was omitted. 

The difference between the reported slow progress in September 
19 16 and May 19 17 is shown in table 2 for ten cities which col- 
lected figures at both times, the total of which shows the slow- 
progress percentage to be 4.4 higher in the report at the beginning 
of the school year, which is the best time to assemble age and 
progress data. 

For purposes of comparison outside New York State, superin- 
tendents making these surveys as per September 1 9 1 8 or February 
19 1 9 should deduct at least 5 per cent from their total slow progress 
percentage. This does not apply to tables 16 and 17, on pages 
31 and 32, nor to figure 10 and table 29. In other words, September 



Table 2 

Progress reported by ten cities by two methods, September 1916 and May 1917 





PUPILS 


PERCENTAGES 




Rapid 


Normal 


Slow 


Total 


Rapid 


Normal 


Slow 




I 


13 

49 


291 
379 


380 

237 


684 
665 


1.9 

7-4 


42.5 
57- 


55.6 
35.6 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 




77 
133 


689 
766 


514 
359 


I 280 
I 258 


6.1 
10.6 


53.8 
60.9 


40.1 
28.5 


Sept. 
May- 


1916 




1917 


3 


i6s 
216 


731 
645 


289 
223 


I 185 
I 084 


13.9 
19-9 


61.7 
59. 5 


24.4 
20.6 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 


'4 


i6s 
159 


623 
666 


540 
479 


I 328 
I 304 


12.4 
12.2 


46,9 
51. 1 


40.7 
36.7 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 


5 


144 
196 


S5I 
661 


375 
207 


I 070 
I 064 


13.4 

18.4 


51.4 
62.1 


35.2 
19. 5 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 


6 


210 
133 


521 
532 


302 
398 


I 033 
I 063 


20.3 
12.5 


50.4 
50. 


29.3 
37.5 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 


7 


44 
30 


I 349 
I 251 


860 
902 


2 253 
2 183 


2. 
1.3 


59.9 

57.4 


38.1 
41.3 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 


8 


112 
121 


608 
731 


362 
203 


I 082 
I 055 


10.3 
II. 5 


56.2 
69.3 


33.5 
19.2 


Sept. 
May 


1916 




1917 




42 
30 


263 
259 


199 
186 


504 
475 


8.3 
6.2 


52.2 
54.6 


39. 5 
39.2 


Sept. 
May 


1916 
1917 




10 


17 
25 


423 
337 


194 
227 


634 
589 


2.7 
4-3 


66.7 
57.2 


30.6 
38.5 


Sept. 
May 


1916 
1917 




Total 


989 
I 092 


6 049 

6 227 


4 015 
3 421 


II 053 
10 735 


9. 

lO.I 


54.7 
38.0 


36.3 
31.9 


Sept. 
May 


1916 
1917 





or February figures are directly comparable with tables 16, 17, 29 
and figure 10; the slow progress percentages obtained in September 
or February will be about 5 per cent greater than the figures of 
May 191 7, shown in the other tables. For example, if a superin- 
tendent should prepare a table similar to table 16 in September or 
February for a system containing between 500 and 999 elementary 
pupils finding a total slow progress of 35 per cent, the position of 
that city in table 7 on page 10, would be 30 per cent slow progress 
approximately at the first quartile instead of 35 per cent at the 
median. 

City totals 

Tables 3 to 11 show the progress figures and percentages reported 
by individual cities and villages in the various groups, beginning 
with cities enrolling more than 5000 elementary pupils. Attention 
is called to the fact that the total or average of any group actually 
conceals the conditions which exist in the separate components of 
the group. 



Table 3 

Progress reports from six cities enrolling more than 5000 elementary pupils 



CITY 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


SLOW 


TWO OR 
MORE 
YEARS 
SLOW' 


TOTAL 


A 


613 
3 SOS 
I 86s 
3 363 

74S 


9 887 

8 737 

IS 634 

26 171 

2 926 

3 020 


2 006 

3 286 
5 172 

12 324 

I 768 

2 428 


333 
698 
831 

4 089 
391 
792 


12 SO6 

IS 528 

22 671 
41 858 

5 439 
5 781 


B 


c 


D 


E 


F.. 




Total 


10 424 


66 375 


26 984 


7 134 


103 783 





Total . 



Corresponding percentages 



4-90 


79.06 


16.04 


2.66 


22.57 


56.26 


21.17 


4.49 


8.23 


68.96 


22.81 


3.66 


8.03 


62.53 


29.44 


0.76 


13.69 


53.79 


32.52 


7.18 


5. 76 


52.24 


41.99 


13.70 


10.04 


63.96 


26.00 


6.87 



From table 3 it is seen that the slow-progress percentage of 26 
for the group of cities with over 5000 elementary pupils in table i 
represents a range of slow-progress percentages from 16 to 42. In 
the same manner, the percentage of pupils reported two or more 
years slow ranges from 2.6 to 13.7. 

When a niimber of measurements of any sort are arranged in any 
given order, as in this case, in the order of slow-progress percentage, 
the entire number of measurements is called a series or an array, and 
it is customary to locate the middle member or midpoint of the series 
and call it the median (Md) and to use this median in many instances 
in place of the average. 

The median of this series of six measurements is the average 
between the third and fourth members, which is 26.13 per cent. The 
average of the six percentages is 28.16 per cent, while the average 
figured from a total of all six cities is 26 per cent. Superintendents 
will find the median the most convenient measure both to determine 
and to use in making comparisons with other cities of the same 
group. 



' Included in '"slow"; total equals the sum of rapid, normal and slow in all tables. 



Table 4 
Progress reports from cities enrolling 3000 to 4999 elementary pupils 



CITY 


RAPID 


NORM.'VL 


SLOW 


TWO OR 
MORE 
YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


A 


561 

639 

821 

773 

669 
470 
136 

414 


2 071 
2 143 
2 461 
2 998 
2 146 

1 720 

2 814 
2 008 


453 

586 

827 

I 196 

894 

993 

I 805 

I 635 


109 
100 
186 
317 
207 
223 

523 

527 


3 085 


B '. 


3 368 


C 


4 109 
4 967 
3 709 


D 

E 


F 


3 183 


G 


4 755 


H 


4 057 






Total 


4 483 


18 361 


8 389 


2 192 


31 233 







Percentages corresponding to above figures 



A 


18.17 
18.97 
19-98 
15.65 
18.03 
14.77 
2.93 
10.51 


67.13 
63.62 
59.88 
60.35 
57.8s 
54-04 
59-17 
49-49 


14.7 

17.39 

19.34 

24.00 

24.10 

31.19 

37.90 

40-. 00 


3.533 
2.969 
4.520 
10.275 
5.581 
7 .000 
16.142 
17.082 




B 




C 




D 




E 




F 




G 




H 








Total 


14.35 


58.79 


26.86 


7.01 









This table shows a range of reported slow progress from 14.7 to 
40 per cent. In this series there are eight members and the median is 
the average between the fourth and fifth measures, or 24.05 per cent. 

Table 5 

Progress reports from seven cities and one village enrolling 2000 to 2999 
elementary pupils 



CITY 


RAPID 


NORM.-VL 


SLOW 


TWO OR 
MORE 
YEARS 
SLOW 


TOT.\L 


A 


728 
000 

693 
166 

394 

534 

30 

136 


1 278 

2 127 
I 112 
I 626 
I 416 
I 174 
I 353 

851 


361 

465 

649 

795 
806 
918 
861 
I 216 


106 
104 
213 
197 
193 
274 
275 

379 


2 367 
2 592 

2 454 

2 587 

^ 616 


B 


c 


D 


E 


F 


-> 626 


G 


2 244 
2 203 


H 




Total 


2 681 


10 937 


6 071 


I 741 


19 689 





Percentages corresponding to above figures 



Total . 



30.75 
00.0 
28.23 
6.41 
15.06 
20.33 
1.33 
6.17 

13-62 



53-99 
82.06 


15.25 
17.93 


45-31 
62.8s 


26.44 
30.73 


54-12 


30.81 


44-7 

60.29 

38.62 


34.9s 
38.36 
55. 2 



30.83 



4.47 
6.53 
8.67 

7.61 

7.37 

10.43 

12.25 
17 .20 

8.76 



r>E'RCtnTA^Er AF- SL6W J>fe0^fet5S '« iZZ ettME-MTAfeY SYST&MS 



*o 50 





LLINO ht-TW6-6-N 
300-500 



MlrblArH-34 



500-1000 



M&blANl-SSo/ 



1000-3000 




ME-blAh- 



3000 



E'blAM-ZI-o/j 



SOOO 



MCBe-Twe&M 

5C»00 



•/. 



zsy. 



AMO 



Ak&IM/!.M~5^6</« 



Figure 2 

Each horizontal Hne represents the percentage of slow-progress pupils in one 
elementary school system. The total enrolment in each system if represented 
graphically would be shown in each case by a line extending entirely across the 
diagram. The pupils represented by the black line are retarded and all the 
others in each system are making normal and rapid progress. 



In this series of seven cities and one village, the percentages of 
slow progress range from 15.25 to 55.2. This series, however, hav- 
ing eight measures has no single middle member and the median 
30.05 per cent is determined by taking the average of the two middle 
members in this array, namely, the fourth and fifth. 

Table 6 

Progress reports from sixteen cities and eight villages enrolling 1000 to 1999 

elementary pupils 



CITY 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


SLOW 


TWO OR 
MORE 
YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


A 


43 
00 
121 
560 
196 
216 
122 

54 
219 

281 

00 

186 
133 
141 

S3 
62 

I2S 

178 
159 
133 
49 
16 
56 
20 


930 

I IIS 

731 

933 
661 
64s 
97S 

I 050 
980 
S93 
928 
624 
766 
829 

I 030 
847 
796 
539 
666 
532 
689 
727 
338 
194 


60 
III 
204 
356 
209 
22s 
336 
332 
306 

295 
337 
311 
361 

412 
497 
443 

502 

399 

481 
400 
. 576 
701 
675 
I 162 


8 



32 

117 

44 
43 
80 
39 
92 
83 
93 
69 

120 
134 
102 
174 
184 
III 
122 
102 

i8s 

238 
328 
463 


I 033 


B 


I 226 


C 


I 056 


D 


I 849 


E 


I 066 


P 


I 086 


G 


I 433 


H 


I 436 


I 


I 505 


J 


I 169 


K... :.;.:::.::::: 

L.. 


I 26s 
I 121 


M 


I 260 


V 


I 382 


6 


I 580 


p 


I 352 


Q.,. 


I 423 


R 


I 116 


S 


I 306 


T 


I 06s 


U 


I 314 


V 


T z]/]/] 


W. 


I 069 


X 


I 376 






Total 


3 123 


18 118 


9 691 


2 963 


30 932 







Percentages corresponding to above figures 



A 


4.2 
0.0 
ii-S 
30.4 
23-7 
19.9 

8.6 

3-4 

12 .9 

24.1 

0.0 

16.7 

10. S 
10.8 
3.4 
4.6 
8.8 
16. 

12.2 
12. 5 
3.8 
I.I 
S-3 
1.9 


90. 

91- 

69.3 

50.4 

S6.8 

59-5 

68.1 
73.2 
63 -7 
50.8 
73 -S 
55-7 

61. 

60. 

65.3 

62.7 

56. 

48.3 

5I-I 

SO. 

52. 5 

50.4 

31.7 

14. 1 


5.8 

9. 
19.2 
19.2 
19.5 
20.6 

23.3 
23-4 
23-4 
25.1 
26.5 
27.6 

28.5 
29.2 
31-3 
32.7 
35-2 

35-7 

36.7 

37.5 

43.7 

48.5 

63. 

84. 


I 

3 
6 
4 
4 

6 
3 
6 

7 
7 
6 

10 
10 
6 
13 
13 

10 

9 

10 

14 

17 
31 

45 


100 


B 




C. . 




D 




E.. . . . 




F 




— Qi=Ji.28 
G.. 




H... 




I 




J 




K 




L 




— Md=28.os 

M 




N... 









P. . . ... 




Q 




R..:.:;.; : : 




—03=36.45 
S. . 






T 




U 




v 




W 




X 








Total 


10.09 


58. 57 


31.33 


9.57 





In this series of twenty-four cities we may add two other points 
to the median (Md) in the center. These points are located just 
half way between the median and the extremes and are called 
the first and third quartiles. The first quartile (Qi) is that point 
along the series which has one-fourth of the measures in front of it 
and three-fourths of the measures following it. The third quartile 
(Q3) is preceded by three-fourths of the measures and followed by 
one-fourth of them. In this series of twenty-four measures, the 
extremes of slow-progress percentage range from 5.8 to 84. The 
first quartile located between the sixth and seventh measures, is 
21.28 per cent. The median is the average between the twelfth 
and thirteenth measures, or 28.05 per cent. The third quartile 
located between the eighteenth and nineteenth measures, is 36.45 
per cent. 

Between the two quartile points lie just half of the measures; in 
other words, the quartiles inclose the middle half of the series in the 
order of the item measured with the median in the center. In general 
terms, a superintendent may consider his system to be normal if 
his city schools are within the quartile range, but if his system's 
rating places his schools in the first or the last fourth of the series, 
there is occasion for further study of the local situation. 

The school systems tabulated thus far are those with 1000 elemen- 
tary pupils and upwards. They have been tabulated in small groups 
as the total number of systems of this size in the State is not large. 
The tables which follow comprise smaller school systems from 999 
elementary pupils downwards. The details of rapid, normal and slow 
progress for these systems will appear in tables 19 to 2 7, which give 
these figures for the different grades. For the purpose of showing 
the range of slow-progress percentages reported by the larger number 
of small cities and villages in these groups, the tables which follow 
indicate merely the percentage of slow progress reported and the 
number of cities which report each different per cent. 

Thus four columns of figures appear in each table. The first 
colimm consists of all the percentages of total slow progress hsted in 
increasing order. The second column is the number of cities and 
villages reporting each per cent. The third column consists of the 
percentages of pupils retarded two or more years and the fourth 
column gives the niimber of places reporting each per cent. The 
first and third columns constitute what is known as the measure, 
while the second and fourth columns constitute the frequency. 
Measure is indicated by " m " and frequency is indicated by " f ". 



lO 



Table 7 

Slow-progress percentages reported by 4 cities, 16 villages and 28 union free 
school districts with an elementary enrolment between 500 and 999 



SLOW-PROGRTTSS PERCKNTAGE REPORTEO 



NUMBER OF 

CITIES 
REPORTING 



PER CENT 

TWO OR MORE 

YEARS 

RETARDED 



NUMBER OF 

CITIES 
REPORTING 



Meiisiire (m) 

II 

17 

18 

22 

23 

2^ 

25 

26 

2k.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.]'.'.'.'.'. 
— 0i=28.S 

30 

31 

32 

33 

34 

35 

— Md=3S . 5 

36 

37 

38 

39 

40 

—03=40.75 

41 

42 

43 

44 

45 

46 

47 

49 

63 



Frequency If) 



Measure (m) 
Less than i 



6 Oi 
7 
8 
9 
10- Md 

II 
12 
13 
14 
IS 
16-Q3 

17 
18 



Fre.juency {/) 



The range of this series is from 11 to 63 per cent for total slow 
progress and from less than i to 25 per cent for two-year retardation. 

The medians and quartiles are indicated. The medians do not 
lie in the exact center of the printed columns because certain per 
cents occur several times, but they are the exact middle point on 
the scale of measures from one extreme to the other. The quartiles 
are the exact quarter points. 



IJ 



Table 8 

Slow-progress percentages reported by three villages and sixty-one union free 
school districts with an elementary enrolment between 300 and 499 



SLOW-PROGRESS PERCENTAGES REPORTED 



im) 

6 

10 

II 

18 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27-Qi 

28 

29 

31- . ■ 

32 

33 

34-Md 

35 

36 

37 

38 

39 

40-Q3 

41 

42 

45 

46 

47 

48 

61 

72 



NUMBER 
REPORTING 



(/) 



PER CENT 

TWO OR MORE 

YEARS 

RETARDED 



(m) 
Less than 



5 

6-O1 

7 

8-Md 

9 
10 
II 

12-O3 
13 
14 
15 
17 
18 
20 
23 
33 



NtnUBER 
REPORTING 



(/) 



[2 



Table 9 

Slow-progress percentages reported by one village and seventy-six union free 
school districts with an elementary enrolment between 200 and 299 



SLOW-PROGRESS PERCENTAGES REPORTED 





PER CENT 




NUMBER 


TWO OR MORE 


NUMBER 


REPORTING 


YEARS 
RETARDED 


REPORTING 


I 





5 


I 


I 


2 


2 


2 




2 


3-Qi 


6 


I 


4 


3 


I 


5 


6 


I 


6 


6 


2 


7-Md 


7 


2 


8 


9 


I 


9 


5 


2 


10-Q3 


4 


3 


12 


3 


I 


13 


2 


3 


14 


3 


4 


15 


2 


2 


16 


I 


3 


17 


I 


2 


18 


2 


2 


23 


I 


3 


24 


2 








3 












3 






3 






6 


















I 






























3 












I 


















I 







4 

6 

12 ... . 

13 

16 

17. . . . 

18 

19 

20. . . . 
22. . . . 

23 

24-O1 ■ 

2S 

26 

27 

28 

29 

30 

31. . . • 
32-Md 

33 

34 

35 

36.... 

37. . . . 

38. ... 
39-O3. 

40 

41 

42 ... . 

43 

44 

47 

48.... 

49 

SI 

52 

61 

70 



In this table of 7 7 measures the median is the thirty-ninth measure 
or the " last " of the three measures of 32 per cent for total slow 
progress and the first of the seven measures of 7 per cent for two or 
more years slow. 

The quartile points are located 19I measures along the scale from 
either end; the first quartile is one-half of the "way" from the 
nineteenth measure of 24 per cent to the twentieth measure of 25 
per cent, or 24.5 per cent. The third quartile is 19I points from 
the bottom or " within " the twentieth measure of 39 per cent. For 
the two-year retardation, the quartiles are 3 and 10 per cent 
respectively. 



13 




Figure 3 

In both of the diagrams each horizontal Hne represents the slow-progress 
percentage reported by one elementary school sj^stem. 



14 

Table lo 

Slow-progress percentages reported by one hundred and fifty-three union free 
school districts with an enrolment between lOO and 199 









TWO YEARS OR 


MORE 


SLOW 


-PROGRESS 


PERCENTAGES 












SLOW PROGRESS 


(m) 


(/) 


(m) 


(/) {m) 


(/) 







41 


I 


4 


10 




42 


8 I 


6 


13 




44-Q^ 


4 2 


6 


15 




45 


4 3 


9 


16 




46 


3 4-Qi 


13 


17 




47 


6 5 


5 


18 


3 


48 


3 6 


17 


19 


2 


49 


6 7 


10 


20 


4 


50 


3 8-Md 


ID 


21 


3 


51 


I 9 


9 


22 


2 


52 


2 10 


II 


23 


I 


54 


3 II 


7 


24 


6 


56 


I 12 


7 


25 


I 


57 


2 13-Q3 


7. 


26 


3 


61 


I 14 


4 


28 


3 


64 


I 15 


5 


29-Q. 


6 


89 


I 16 


5 


30 


9 


90 


I 18 


3 


31 


5 






19 


3 


32 


6 






20 


5 


33 


3 






21 


I 


34 


8 






22 


I 


35-Md 


6 






23 


2 


36 


3 






24 


I 


37 


3 






27 


I 


38 


4 






43 


I 


39 


5 










40 


7 


N=i53 


N= 153 





The columns beginning with o and ending with 90 headed m mean 
that villages reported slow-progress percentages ranging from noth- 
ing to 90. Zero per cent, 10 per cent, 13 per cent, 15 per cent, and 16 
per cent were reported by one village each ; 1 7 per cent was reported 
by four villages, 18 per cent by three, 19 per cent by two, and 20 
per cent by four, etc. 

The column headed / indicates how many villages reported each 
per cent. This is called the "frequency." There were in all 153 
village elementary school systems reporting with an enrolment 
between 100 and 199. If the villages were " lined up in a row " 
in the order of their slow-progress percentages, the extremes would 
be o and 90. The middle village would have 35 per cent. The 
village which is one-fourth of the way along the line would report 
29 per cent, and the village three-fourths of the way through the 



series would report 44 per cent. The middle percentage of 35 is 
called the median of the series or " array " and the 29 per cent and 
44 per cent are called the first and third quartiles respectively. 

Table 11 

Slow-progress percentages reported by one hundred and seventy-five union 
free school districts with an elementary enrolment below 100 



SI.OW-PROGRESS PERCENTAGES REPORTED 



NUMBER 
REPORTING 



PER CENT 

TWO OR MORE 

YEARS 

RET.^RDED 



NUMBER 
REPORTING 



S . ■ 

7. . . 

8. . . 
9- . . 

11 . . . 

12 . . . 

13. . • 

14. . . 

15. . ■ 

16. . . 

18. . . 

19. . . 

20. . . 
21 . . . 
22-Ql. 
23 . . . 
24. . . 

25 

26 

27. . . 

28 

29 . . . 

30 

31. . . 
32-Md 

33 . ■ . . 
34- • • 
35 ... . 
36. . . . 
37 ... . 
38. .. . 
30. . . . 
40 ... . 
41. . . . 
42-Q3., 
43 ... . 

45 

46.... 
48 ... . 

50. . . . 

51. . . . 

52. . . . 

53. . . . 

54. . . - 

58. . . . 

59. . . . 
63 ... . 
73 ... • 
76.... 



3-0! 

4 
5 
6 

7-Md 



TI-Q3 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 



25 
46 



i6 



S\ow Progress 
Percentages In J 75 

vSy>stem3 With Less Than 
lOO Element^sry pupils Each 



Percen+3 Twt? or 
More Vear^ 5/o\*/ 




Figure 4 



^7 

Slow-progress Figures not Basis for Criticism 

Thus far in tables 3 to ii inclusive we have arranged the city and 
village communities of the State in nine groups according to the 
size of the elementary enrolment and within each group we have 
placed the members in a row in the order of their reported slow- 
progress for the purpose of seeking out the^jxiiddle member of each 
row and the two members which are located in the one-quarter and 
three-quarter points in the series. These points are indicated in the 
preceding tables and by means of them each superintendent may' 
detenhine his relative standing with reference to the other com- 
munities of his particular group. As is indicated in the first paper 
of this series, there is no actual nor inferred criticism of those systems 
which happen to have reported large slow-progress conditions. The 
problem of retardation is one which exists throughout the State and • 
the relative number of slow-progress pupils is a very precise measure 
of that problem and its difficulty for the local superintendent, prin- 
cipals and teachers. But when it comes to criticizing the efficiency- 
of the schools on the basis of reported slow progress, so many other 
conditions may enter into this complex problem as to render the mere' 
position of the school system on a progress-percentage list a very 
unsafe criterion for drawing conclusions about the character of the. 
work carried on in the schools. Some of these other features which 
influence the " standing " of a school system with respect to retar-' 
dation are: . - ..; 

a The late entrance of pupils into the first grade 

b Varying practice in promoting children into and out of the first 

grade 
c Different standards of promotion from grade to grade 
d Differences in the health of pupils while at school 
e Varying degrees of regularity of attendance 
/ Different degrees of familiarity with the English language 
g Differences in the mentahty of normally intelligent children 
h The presence of mentally subnormal children in regular classes 
7 Physical defects of children 
k Differences in the maturity of children 
/ Differences in the home environment of children 
ni Differences in the amount of time which children may devote to 

the preparation of lessons outside of school • 
n Circimistances incident to the moving of families from place 

to place 



i8 



The transfer of pupils from one school to another and from 

parochial to public schools within a city 
p Differences in the type of pupil left in the system when others 

have been removed 
q Differences in the extent to which communities offer inducements 

for pupils to leave school 

Some of them are so general as to affect nearly all schools alike 
and others, while affecting different classrooms, will not materially 
change the result throughout city and village systems as a whole, 
and they are presented by no means as excuses for retarded conditions. 

If a superintendent finds that his reported rating places his schools 
in front of the first quartile in the series, or above the median, a 
brief account of any features of his organization, plan of supervision 
and methods of teaching which in his opinion many have contributed 
to the success of his system and resulted in the low slow-progress 
percentage, might be of service to other superintendents by way of 
suggestion. If a sufficient number of memoranda are received on 
this point, they will be assembled into a bulletin, returned to the 
contributing superintendents and distributed to all the communities 
participating in this research. 

While as a general rule throughout the State it may be probable 
that the better organized systems will be found in the schools above 
the median, a relatively high position in the series does not neces- 
sarily mean a superior school system. The reverse of this proposition 
is even more true because we know from other sources that in many 
cases some of the very best work in the State is being done in com- 
munities where circumstances apparently beyond the control of the 
schools militate against the achievement of a normal amount of 
successful progress through school. 

Medians and Quartiles for Nine Groups of Communities 

A single table showing the slow-progress percentages reported by 
these 563 communities in detail would be confusing rather than illumi- 
nating. For the sake of brevity it is customary to describe the con- 
ditions shown in a whole series of these measurements by tabulating 
five figures, the two extremes, the two quartiles and the median. 
This condensed table is shown for the nine groups of cities and 
villages which have been reported in the foregoing tables. 



19 



Table 12 

Extreme, median and quartile percentages of slow progress in communities 
grouped according to elementary enrolment 



ELEMENTARY 
ENROLMENT 


SLOW-PROGRESS PERCENT.\GES 


Lower 
extreme 


First 
quartile 


Median 


Third 
quartile 


Higher 
extreme 


Quartile 
range 


Quartile 
deviation 


0\eT 5000. . . 
3 000-4 999. 
2 000-2 999 . 
I 000- I 999 . 

500- 999 . 

300- 499 ■ 

200- 299 . 

TOO- 199- 

Below 100 . . . 


16 

14 

15 

5 

1 1 

6 

4 




7 

25 

8 


19.13 

18.36 
22.18 

21.275 

28.5 

27. 

24-5 
29. 


26.13 

24 . 05 

30.05 

28.05 

35. 5 

34- 

32. 

35. 

32. 


34 
35 
36 
36 
40 
40 
39 
44 
42 


89 

4 

6S 

45 

75 


42 
40 
55 
84 
63 
72 
70 
90 
76 


2 


15 
17 
14 
IS 
12 
13 
14 
IS 
20 


76 

04 

47 

17s 

25 

5 


7 
8 
7 
7 
6 
6 
7 

10 


88 

52 

24 
S8 

125 

5 

25 

5 



The two columns of extremes show that the greatest variation in 
slow progress occurs in the very small systems, the range being from 
4 to 70, from o to 90 and from 2 to 76 per cent, while the total range 
for the two highest groups of cities is from 16 to 42 and 14.7 to 40 
per cent. 

Since extremes are very unsafe criteria, it is customary to charac- 
terize a series of measurements by indicating the two percentages 
between which the middle half of the measures lie, that is, the range 
in per cent between the two quartiles, the object being to find how 
large a distance on the scale contains the middle half of the series. 
This is known as the interquartile range and is given in the next to 
the last column of the table. 

The two columns of extremes show that the total range increases 
as the systems grow smaller. This last column but one shows that 
the position on the scale of the middle half of the measures does not 
bear this inverse ratio to the size of the systems but that the least 
variation among the middle half of the measures occiurs in the two 
adjacent groups of systems from 300 to 499 and 500 to 999, in which 
groups the difference between the communities which stand one- 
quarter of the way from the top and the systems three-quarters of 
the way toward the bottom is only thirteen percentage points. This 
means that more uniform conditions of retardation are to be found 
in these two groups of communities than in the other seven groups of 
the above table, in which the middle half of the measures are scattered 
over a wider range of percentage points. 

In statistical tables it is customary to express this variation by 
dividing the quartile range by two in order to show the amount of 
deviation from the midpoint or median. This distance on the 



20 

scale between the quartiles divided by two is called the quartile 
deviation or semi-interquartile range and is given in the right-hand 
column of the table. In general, when a nurnber of large groups 
of measurements are tabulated for comparison, the groups with 
the least quartile deviation are supposed to represent more uniform 
conditions than those groups which show large deviations and the 
general inference is that this uniformity means probable similarity 
in organization and administration. 

Median May Not Be Proper Measure 

Attention should again be called to the fact that the slow-prog- 
ress percentages reported by these 563 communities are based 
on their own local standards of promotion and teaching and we can 
only assume that in the uniform course of study pursued throughout 
the State and in the high character and ability of superintendents 
and principals, which we confidently believe is likewise statewide, 
we have the assurance that these tables present fairly reliable 
estimates of superintendents, principals and teachers who are 
doing all in their power for the welfare of the children in the schools. 

On the other hand, the fact that the median point of a group 
of 24 cities is 28 per cent slow progress and the median point of 
77 villages is 32 per cent slow progress, is no proof that these 
points indicate what the amount of slow progress actually ought to 
be. Certainly no one would suggest that in the group of 24 cities 
the 12 above the median with slow-progress percentages less than 
28 per cent should begin increasing their retardation until the 
median was reached. With reference to the school systems in the 
lower half of any series, we can not say that the median is the 
goal toward which that city should work, because we know 
practically nothing about the character of the school work repre- 
sented by this median and we have no reason to believe that what 
happens to be the reported achievement of the middle community 
in a list of a score or a hundred is any where near the proper measure 
for the entire group. To be content with obtaining these median 
retardation rates would indeed be following a line of least resistance 
to the neglect of much that ought to be done for the progress of the 
school children. The scrutiny with which many superintendents 
in various parts of the country have subjected their systems to 
the most thoroughgoing examination has revealed both praise- 
worthy features and remedial and preventive defects in their schools, 
often in their own offices, to such an extent that we can no 



21 



longer conclude that the average attainment-results of any number 
of different localities represents all that ought to be expected from 
most of them. Appraising the work of a school system by such 
a standard is akin to the rather widespread but quite precarious 
procedure of figuring the school budget on the basis of what happened 
to have been spent the year before rather than on the basis of the 
modern budget carefully analyzed by function, character, object 
and location. 

Some retardation will of course always be present, and from 
these figures we can not determine the extent to which school systems 
might reasonably be expected to reduce their slow-progress per- 
centages. As already pointed out, the percentage of slow progress 
which actually exists in the schools is probably 4 or 5 per cent higher 
throughout the State than the figures reported by the schools of 
the State in May 19 17 here presented. 

These tables constitute merely the first general statewide state- 
ment of conditions showing what the schools of the State say about 
themselves, and enabling each city and village superintendent 
and union school district principal definitely to locate the place 
which his schools occupy among all the other self-reported ratings 
of the State and in particular among the school systems which 
enrol about the same number of elementary pupils. All this is 
of course only the first of a half dozen or more steps in the direction 
of securing for all the schools of this State definite and reliable infor- 
mation about the conditions of the pupils and the results of 
educational effort, the information finally obtained being of such 
a character as to be a help rather than a burden to the superintendents 
and principals who contribute it. 

The next step is to determine by much more carefully collected 
data exactly what the rapid, normal and slow progress conditions 
are when measured by the latest methods of modern statistical 
research. This second step has been in progress in a number of 
cities and villages during the present school year. The first results 
of this investigation will be' to show the difference in conditions 
reported in May 19 17 and those found to exist in September 19 17 
and February 19 18. 

A third step in this program of educational accounting after 
the schools have been rated by their own standards is the measure- 
ment of these school systems by the common measure of the standard 
classroom tests by means of which the school ability of the pupil 
can be definitely appraised in addition to his general condition of 
retardation or acceleration, as determined by his age and promotion 



22 



from grade to grade. In addition to the many uses which progressive 
superintendents and principals have found for these now thoroughly 
tried and permanently established standard tests in the regular 
program of supervision throughout the school year, these definite 
measurements constitute a most valuable appraisal of local school 
and classroom standards which are particularly applicable in the 
analysis of the children of a school system considered in the nine 
standard age and progress groups in which these children find 
themselves placed by reason of their past school life and their 
apparent success or failure with local teachers. At present it is 
planned to send to the superintendents and principals of the State 
shortly after the opening of schools in the fall of 19 18 the results 
of an amount of research work sufficient to illustrate adequately 
the complete correlation of age and progress locally found with 
the corresponding abilities of pupils as shown by standard class- 
room tests. The titles of 84 tests for elementary grades are here 
included for reference.^ 



Tests for Elementary Grades 

Arithmetic 



Guhin's Bobbit's 

Courtis's B Monroe's 

Starch's A Woody's 

National busi- Thompson's 
ness ability tests 



Gray's 
Kansas 
Starch's 



Gray's 



Monroe's 
Brown's 
Starch's English 
vocabulary 



Boston fractions 
Stone's fundamental 
Courtis's reasoning 
Bonser reasoning 

Silent reading 

Courtis's research 
Thorndike's visual 
Haggarty's visual 



Oral reading 



Cleveland survey 
Stone's reasoning 
Rice's reasoning 
Buckingham's reasoning 
Courtis's series A 



Haggarty's 



Jones's 



Courtis's series R 2 
Thorndike's understanding 
Minnesota scale Beta 
Fordyce's achievements 

Price's 



Spelling 

Buckingham's Ayres's Courtis's 

Monroe's timed lists Iowa dictation 



Nebraska Rice's Starch's 
National business ability 
Jones's concrete 



Writing 



Gray's 

Breed & Downs 



Ayres' (children) 
Ayres Gettysburg 



Ayres' (adults) 
Thorndike's 



Courtis's 
Freeman's 



Johnson's & Stones 



Zaner & Blossom 



1 Details of procedure and addresses for obtaining these tests are given in 
full in " Educational Tests and Measurements " by Monroe, Kelley and De Voos 
(Houghton Mifflin Company) and in part 2 of the 1 7th Year Book of the National 
Society for the Study of Education (Public School PubHshing Company, Bloom- 
ington. 111.). See also an article, " Measurement and Diagnosis as an aid to 
Supervision," by Haggarty, in " School and Society," volume 6, September 
1917, page 271. 



23 



Nassau county 
Willi -g's 
Breed & Frostic 
National busi- 
ness ability 



Language 

Hillegas Courtis's 

Trabue completion 
Buckingham grammar 
Charter's grammar 
Starch's grammar 
Thompson's research 



Boston 

Thompson's standardized 



Geography 

Buckingham 
Hahn-Lackey 



Thorndike's extension 
Harvard-Newton 
Haggarty's grammar 
Starch's grammar scales 
Starch's punctuation 
Boston copying 



Witham's standard 
Starch's series A 



History 
Buckingham Boll & McCollum's 

Harlan's information American history Starch's American history 



Drawing 



Thorndike's 



Music 
Seashore's talent chart 



After a school system has been properly measured by the age- 
progress record of the pupils and this measure checked with the 
standard classroom tests as indicated in the preceding types of 
measurement, a fourth step is the correlation of the pupils' age- 
progress ratings and tested abilities with their individual health 
and physical records. A very limited amount of research along this 
line is under way and will be distributed when completed. 
A corollary to this work with physical and health records is the 
application of actual intelligence and psychological tests to small 
groups of children found markedly deficient in all the preceding tests. 

Necessarily on a still smaller scale at the present time, this 
phase of work has already been undertaken and a limited quantity 
of data will be forthcoming when the schools open in the fall of 1918. 

Pupils Schooled Locally and Elsewhere 

When a superintendent or principal is confronted with a retardation 
table of his system, he naturally seeks an explanation at least for 
a portion of the retardation among the conditions listed on page 1 7 . 
Neither the head of a school system nor the teachers are responsible 
for all the schooling of all the pupils, since the local system always 
contains a very considerable number of pupils who come to that 
system after previous schooling elsewhere. In accordance with 
this idea, 88 school systems with elementary enrolments ranging 
from 25 to 500 pupils, reported progress figures at the close of the 
school year 19 16-17, both for all pupils who had been educated 
exclusively in the public school system in which they were enrolled 
when this canvass was made, and those who had been partially 
educated elsewhere. The results are shown in the following tables: 



24 



Table 13 

Total earolment and pupils schooled locally in eighty-eight communities with 
slow-progress percentage of each 



COMMUNITY 



3- 

4- 
S- 
6. 
7. 
8. 
9. 

■TO. 
I I . 
12 . 
13- 

14- 
15. 
16. 
17. 
18. 
19. 
20. 

21 . 

22 . 

2-1. 
25. 
26, 
27. 
28, 
29. 
30 
31 

33 

34 
35 
36 
37 
38 
39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 
45 
46 
47 
48 
49 
SO 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 
57 
S8 
59 
60 
.61 
62 
63 
64 



TOTAL 

PUPILS 

KNROLI.ED 



54 
2S1 

St 
95 
55 
281 
117 
212 
123 

49 
28s 
279 
192 
568 
.130 

28 

83 
304 
139 
lor 

82 
500 
320 

62 
268 
204 
14s 
206 

67 
IIS 
108 
3'73 
222 
299 
131 
149 

45 
218 
168 
269 
547 
464 
307 
290 
432 

SO 
180 
214 
147 
238 
197 
254 

96 

79 

28 
476 
292 
368 
124 
552 
332 
314 

31 

96 



PUPILS 
SCHOOLED 
LOCALLY 



32 

263 

34 

81 

34 
223 

71 
156 

71 



168 

174 

122 

426 

277 

10 

59 

236 

93 

78 

34 

318 

253 

62 

175 

139 

77 

141 

41 

64 

72 

290 

207 

168 

79 

78 

26 

146 

107 

238 

490 

292 

233 

194 

314 

26 

ISI 

124 

88 

162 

146 

213 

66 

49 

15 

311 

177 

234 

84 

318 

232 

175 

12 

■ S8 



PER- 
CENTAGE 
SCHOOLED 
LOCALLY 



59 
94 
67 

85 

62 

79 
65 
74 
58 
57 
59 
62 
64 
75 
64 
36 
71 
78 
67 
77 
41 
64 
79 
100 
65 
68 
53 
68 
6i 
56 
67 
78 
93 
56 
60 
52 
58 
67 
64 
89 
90 
63 
76 
67 
72 
52 
84 
58 
60 
68 
74 
84 
69 
62 
54 
66 
61 
64 
68 
58 
70 
56 
44 
60 



PERCENTAGES OF 
SLOW PROGRESS 



Among 

all 
pupils 
enrolled 



Among 
pupils 
locally 

schooled 



25 



Table 13 (concluded) 

Total enrolment and pupils schooled locally in eighty-eight communities with 
slow-progress percentage of each 



COMMUNITY 



6S . 

66 

67 

68 

69 

70 

71 

72 

73 

74 

75 

76 

77 

78 

70 

80 

81 

82 

83 

84 

85 

86 

87 

88 

Total 



TOTAL 

PUPILS 

ENROLLED 



97 
322 
126 

66 

55 

30 

243 

189 

156 

39 

59 

88 

439 

41 

208 

109 

257 

107 

40 

56 

183 

183 

126 

105 



PUPILS 
SCHOOLED 
LOCALLY 



03 

200 

67 

66 

44 
19 

243 

JIG 
126 
23 
48 
63 
330 
41 

i6t 
77 

23 s 
62 
24 
27 

iSi 



380 



PER- 
CENTAGE 
SCJiOOLED 
LOCALLY 



62 
53 
100 

80 
63 

100 

58 
81 
59 
81 
72 
75 
100 
77 
71 
91 
58 
60 
48 
83 
63 
67 
95 



PERCENTAGES OF 
SLOW PROGRESS 



Among 

all 
pupils 
enrolled 



Among 

pupils 

locally 

schooled 



27 
38 
o 
42 
32 
SO 
44 
21 
31 
30 
48 
45 
45 
48 
32 
44 
37 
37 
45 

S3 

42 
68 
90 



It will be noted that in the case of some of the small schools there 
is a greater percentage of retarded pupils among those schooled 
entirel}^ in that school than among the entire enrolment. This 
apparent impossibility is due to the chance advancement of the 
pupils schooled in part elsewhere, who are sufficiently advanced 
to reduce the retardation of the entire school below that of the 
pupils who have never been elsewhere. This is of course exceptional. 

Table 13 shows that of 17,104 pupils enrolled in 88 schools, 
12,380, or 72 per cent, were schooled exclusively in the school where 
they were enrolled at the time the tabulation was made. The 
schools in this table are listed in the order of the reported percentage 
of slow-progress pupils, hence any relation between retardation 
and the percentage of pupils locally schooled is not apparent. As it 
is possible to arrange a given table in the order of but one factor 
at a time, this was chosen as the most important. 

Table 14 shows the retardation reported in each case for the 
entire school listed according to the per cent of pupils locally 
schooled. 



26 



P^F^CE-hTAGE OP SLOW P^I^OGt>E'SS f^VP^ILS 
pjE-r^Of^TE-b BY 88 COMMVNITIErS- 
ALL F>UP>ILS tnfeOLL&b 



PE-ffC&MTAOe- OF- £>tOW PKOOR&SS 
IP Zo 30 40 SC 60 TO ao 90 lOO 





QVAfiT^li' ^5 



ME-b AN 



'/o 



- 54-yJ 



aa Ql/AftTILE- 



4Zo/, 



Figure 5 

Each horizontal hne represents the slow-progress percentage among all pupils 
enrolled in one elementary school system. The schools in this figure are the 
same as in figure 6. 



27 



SLOW i::>t>OG[>B'SS r>tfeCE'riTAGe5 OP tAJt>\lS 
bChOOltb tXCLUSIVE-LY Ih OhB- WbUC 
SCHOOL SYSTtM- 88 COMnV/MITIES feer^fetSEMTEb 



P&RCtMTAGeS OP- SLOV/ PROCRtSS — • 

IP lo 3o 40 60 SO TO 8$ 25 Ljo 




STOl'AtJTILEr- 



/AlrblA 



35«>ov//^fiTll,e' 3(Wo 




ri-27 o/o 



I90J0 



Figure 6 

Each horizontal hne represents the percentage of slow-progress pupils in one 
elementary school system. The. four systems at the top represent no slow 
progress pupils or zero per cent. These are the same school systems shown 
in figure 5. Note that in the case of these pupils who have received all their 
schooling in the local pubHc system in which they were found when this survey 
was made, the slow-progress percentages are lower than those shown m figure 5. 



28 



Table 14 

Slow-progress percentages arranged according to the per cent of pupils locally 

schooled 



PER CENT OF ALL PUPILS SCHOOLED 
LOCALLY 



30-39 . . 
40-49 . . 
50-59. . 
60-69. . 
70-79. . 
80-89. . 
90-100 . 



88 schools. 



ALL PUPILS ENROLLED 



Percentages of retardation 



Lowest 



1st 
quart ile 



Median 



auartile 



Highest 



50 
49 
56 
48 
50 
88 



In table 15 the progress percentages reported by schools are 
arranged in four wa^^s, each in a double column of figures in which 
the first figure is the per cent of slow-progress pupils and the second 
figure is the number of villages reporting the percentage represented 
by the first figure. 

Age-progress and School Locations 

It is of course expected that those pupils who have not moved 
about from place to place will make more satisfactory school progress 
than those who have done any considerable amount of moving. 

The division of the pupils of a public school system into groups 
for the study of retardation on this basis of locations is not so simple 
and is by no means limited to the two groups representing pupils 
who have been schooled elsewhere and those who have not. 

When we go into this matter of the location of pupils' schooling 
we encounter the following groups of pupils which have to be 
analyzed separately as to rapid, normal and slow progress: 

1 Pupils who have never been to school in any other building 

except the one in which they were found at the time of 
the age-progress survey 

2 Pupils schooled entirely in two or more schools of the local 

pubhc system 

3 Groups I and 2 combined, constituting all pupils schooled 

within the local public system 

4 Pupils partly schooled in local parochial and other private 

schools 

5 Pupils partly schooled in any type of schools in other cities 

6 Pupils partly schooled in foreign countries 



29 



Table 15 

Slow-progress percentages reported by villages 

Reading across the top of the page, the first Hne items in this table means that 
9 per cent retardation among all pupils enrolled was reported by one village; 
o per cent retarded two or more years was reported by six villages; o per cent 
retarded at all among pupils exclusively schooled locally was reported by 3 vil- 
lages; and o per cent of two-year retardation among pupils locally schooled was 
reported by 9 villages. The "first figure in each double column is the reported 
percentage of slow progress and the second figure is the number of villages which 
report each particular per cent. 



ALL PUPILS ENROLLED 



TOTAL 
RETARDATION 



Per 

cent 



9 

II 

14 

I . . . . 
17. . .. 

18 

19 

20. . . . 
21 ... . 
22 ... . 

23 

24 

25-Q. . 
26. . . . 

28 

29 

30 

31 

33 

34-Md 

35- • • • 
36.... 

37 

38.... 

39 

40 

41 

42-Q3 . 

43 

44- ■ ■ 
45 ■ ■ ■ . 
46... 

47 • • • 
48... 
49 . . . 
50 

54 

.56.. . 



Fre- 
quency 



N=88 



TWO YEARS 
RETARDATION 



Per 

cent 



-Qi 



3- 

4- 

5- 

6. 

7. ... 

8-Md 

9. .. . 
10. . . . 
12. . . . 
13-Q3 . 
14. .. . 
15. .. . 

16 

18. .. . 
20. . . . 
23 



Fre- 
quency 



N=88 



PUPILS SCHOOLED LOCALLY 



TOTAL 
RETARDATION 



Per 

cent 



o. . . . 

•3 — 

5 

7 

8 . .. . 

9 

II ... . 
12 ... . 

13 

14 

16. . . . 

17 

18 

19-Q1 . 
20. . . . 
21 . . ; . 
22 . . . . 

23 

25 

26. . . . 
27-Md 
28. . . . 

29 

30 

31 

32 

35 

36-Q3 . 

37 

38.... 

39 

41 

42 

44 

45 

48 ... . 
50 

53 

68 

90 



Fre- 
quency 



TWO YEARS 
RETARD.\TION 



Per 

cent 



0. . . . 

1 . . . . 

2. . . . 

3-Q. ■ 
4. .. . 
5-Md 

6 

7 

8 

9-Q3. 

10. . . . 

II ... . 

12 ... . 

13- •- • 
14. .. . 
15. .. . 

16 

17 

18 

20. . . . 



Fre- 
quency 



6 

13 
II 
12 
6 
I 
5 
3 
3 
I 

3 
2 

3 
I 
I 
3 



30 



As it is not worth while to make an analysis in this detail without 
securing complete information about pupils, the record of each 
pupil's age was secured, as well as a record of his progress through 
school. As a pupil may be young, normal or overage and may 
make rapid, normal or slow progress through school, the following 
well-known arrangement of nine age-progress groups is necessary 
to tell the whole truth about any group of pupils under consideration. 

In point of age, the pupil is classified according to whether he is 
young, normal or old with reference to the standard which is as 
follows for heeinninv the work of each grade: 



I B, 6 ^■ears hut less than 7 

1 A, 6r 

2 B, 7 

2 A, ^h 

3 B, 8 

3 A, 8^ 

4 B, 9 
4 A, 9h 



I vears 
1\' " 



lO 



5 B, lo vears but less than ii 

5A, lor " III 

6B, II " 12 

6 A, III " 12^ 

7 B, 12 " 13 

7 A, I2| « 13I 

8 B, 13 " 14 
8 A, 13I " \\\ 



years 



It is important to note that " being in a grade " is not an accurate 
measure for determining progress. 

The circumstances of age and progress result in nine categories of 
pupils : 

1 Underage and rapid progress 

2 Normal age and rapid progress 

3 Overage and rapid progress 

4 Underage and normal progress 

5 Normal both as to age and progress 

6 Overage and normal progress 

7 Underage and slow progress 

S Normal age and slow progress 
9 Overage and slow progress 

These are best shown in the following arrangement of the groups : 



UNDERAGE AND RAPID 
PROGRESS 


NORMAL AGE AND RAPID 
PROGRESS 


OVERAGE AND RAPID 
PROGRESS 


UNDERAGE AND NORMAL 
PROGRESS 


NORMAL BOTH AS TO 
AGE AND PROGRESS 


OVERAGE AND NORMAL 
PROGRESS 


UNDERAGE AND SLOW 
PROGRESS 


NORMAL AGE AND SLOW 
PROGRESS 


OVERAGE AND SLOW 
PROGRESS 



According to this plan the results of the statistical research in the 
cities undertaking this work during 19 16-17 are given. 



31 





Under A^e 


Normal 


Over A0e 


Total 


Rapid 


® 


© 


(2) © 


Normal 






:■■ ..\;\;s:^i'sis;\:^s.:,\K>^ 




Progress 




^^1^^ 






^^^^^^ci^:^y'^^v< 


Slow 

Progress 


^^^^^^^^^^1 


lE^I 


Jz6.J 


K -34.' jj 


Totil 


@ 


( 44.M 





( \00% 



Figure 7 

Age and progress of elementary pupils 

This age-progress percentage chart represents the nine groups of pupils shown 
in the text just preceding table 16. The figures show percentages alone and 
not the actual number of pupils and correspond to table 16, to which additions 
were made after the figure had been drawn, which slightly changed the decimals 
in some of the percentage figures. The total of 100 per cent is the sum of the nine 
groups, not of the 15 other circles in the figure, 6 of which, 3 at the right and 3 
at the bottom, are subtotals. 

Table 16 
46,000 pupils in twenty-two cities in New York State 





NUMBERS 


PERCENTAGES 


PUPILS 


Under- 
age 


Normal 
age 


Over- 
age 


Total 


Under- 
age 


Normal 
age 


Over- 
age 


Total 


Rapid progress. . . . 
Normal progress . . . 
Slow progress 


1 356 

2 710 
315 


I 195 

16 220 

3 148 


820 

7 921 

12 338 


3 371 
26 851 
15 801 


2.9 
5.9 

.7 


2.6 

35.3 

6.8 


1.8 

lei 


7.3 
58.4 
34-3 


Total. 


4 381 


20 563 


21 079 


46 023 


9.5 


44-7 


45 8 


100 







32 



Table 17 
Age-progress analysis of 3665 elementary pupils by school location 

Table A — All pupils enrolled 





NUMBERS 




PERCENTAGES 




PUPILS 


Under- 
age 


Normal 
npie 


Over- 
age 


Tot.al 


Under- 
age 


Normal 
age 


Over- 
age 


Total 


Rapid nrogress 

Normal progress . . . 
Slow progress 


120 
370 
119 


96 
641 
353 


lOI 

431 
I 43-1 


317 
I 442 
I 906 


3-3 
10. 


2.6 

17.5 

9.6 


2.8 
II. 8 
39 I 


8.7 
39.3 
50 


Total 


609 


I 090 


I 966 


3 665 


16.6 


29 7 


53-7 


100 







Table B — 228^ pupils schooled entirely in local public schools 



Rapid progress . . . 
Normal progress . 
Slow progress . . . . 



Total. 



95 
323 
100 


59 
500 
275 


35 
208 
694 


189 
I 031 
I 069 


4.2 
14. 1 
4-4 


2.6 
21.8 
12 


1.5 

9.1 

30.3 


8.3 
45 
46.7 


518 


834 


937 


2 289 


22.7 


36.4 


40.9 


100 



Table C — 836 pupils schooled entirely in two or more local public schools 

Rapid progress . . 
Normal progress . 
Slow progress .... 



Total. 



19 
82 
60 


II 

148 

98 


8 

lOI 

309 


38 
331 

467 


2.3 
9.8 
7.2 


1.3 

17.7 
II. 7 


I.O 
12.2 
36.9 


4.6 
39.6 

55.8 


161 


257 


418 


836 


19.2 


30.7 


50.1 


100 



Table D — • 1453 pupils schooled entirely in one school 



Rapid progress. . 
Normal progress . 
S}ow progress . . . . 



Total. 



76 

241 

40 


48 
352 

177 


27 
107 
38s 


ISI 
700 
602 


5 

17 
3 


3 

24 
12 


2 

7 

27 


10 

48 
42 


357 


577 


519 


I 453 


25 


39 


36 


100 



Table E — /S^ pupils schooled partly in local nonpublic schools 



Rapid progress . . 
Normal progress . 
Slow progress . . . . 



5 

24 
9 


14 
66 
45 


42 
133 

447 


61 
223 
501 


.6 
31 
1 . 2 


1.8 
8.4 
5-7 


5.3 
16.9 
57 


63.9 


38 


125 


622 


785 


4.9 


15.9 


79-2 


100 



Table F — 45S pupils partly schooled in other cities 



Rapid progress 

Normal progress . . . 
Slow progress 


18 
20 
10 


21 
66 
29 


21 

66 

207 


60 
152 
246 


3-9 

4-4 
2.2 


4.6 
14.4 
6.3 


4.6 
14.4 
45.2^ 


13-1 
33.2 
53-7 


Total 


48 


116 


294 


458 


10.5 


23-3 


64. 2 


100 



Table G — 133 pupils partly schooled in foreign countries 



Rapid progress . . 
Norma! progress . 
Slow progress . . . . 



Total . 



2 


2 


3 


7 


2 





2 


3 


9 


24 


36 


2 


6 


18 





4 


86 


90 





3 


65 


5 


15 


113 


133 


4 


II 


85 



33 



^e-r^Ce-MTAGeOP t>Vi:>IL5 

horn oveji-ACE- a 5Low-prifltfee6!> 

3 > 



ALL PVf'lCS 
E-MI»OLLf-b 
4-407. 



A7o/„ 



^30/ >>\/6l.lC SCHOOLS 



C4 3 



»>V(»1L* SCHOOL&b 

6-HTit»ErLY IH LOCAL 

P>VM,lC SCHOOLS 



f>VI»ll,S SCHOOLE-b 
S-NTIR6-LY >K ON6- 
OvbL>C SCHOOL 
30o/, 



Figure 8 

This figure should not be misinterpreted as showing the relative number of 
pupils who have been schooled entirely in the local system or have come into 
it from the outside. It represents groups of pupils based on the location of 
their previous schooling, ranging in size from 133 pupils partly schooled in foreign 
countries to the grand total of 3665 found in the public schools at the time of 
the survey. Each circle represents 100 per cent of its own group and the black 
sector shows the percentage of these that are retarded. 

There are three points in each of these tables which should interest 
the local superintendent. These are (i) the percentage of overage 
pupils; (2) the percentage of slow-progress pupils; (3) the per- 
centage of pupils who are both old and slow for their grade. 

In this particular total group of 3665 pupils, the overage situation 
may be stated as follows: 

Overage, for all pupils enrolled 53.7 per cent 

For pupils schooled entirely within the local 

public system 40 . g per cent 



34 

For pupils who have moved from school to school 

within the local public school system 50. i per cent 

For pupils who have always attended the same 

public school 36 per cent 

Pupils who have come into the system from 

parochial or private schools 79. 2 per cent 

Pupils entering from other cities 64.2 per cent 

Pupils entering from foreign schools 85 per cent 

The corresponding percentages for slow progress and for both 
overage and slow progress are: 



GROUP OF PUPILS 

All pupils enrolled 

Schooled locally in public schools . . 
In two or more local public schools. 

In one school only 

Partly parochial 

Partly out of town 

Partly foreign 



PER CENT 

SLOW 
PROGRESS 




PER CENT 

BOTH OVERAGE 

AND SLOW 

PROGRESS 


52 






39-1 


46. 


7 




30.3 


55. 


,8 




36 -9 


42 






27 


63. 


9 




57 


53 • 


•7 




45-2 


68 






65 



This table shows that at the very start, there are three types 
of location factors which have to be analyzed quantitatively before 
the superintendent can even Ijegin to interpret his own age-progress 
figures: (i) changes within his system, (2) the combination of 
public and parochial schooling, and (3) the combination of local 
and out-of-town schooling. 

The great difference between the number of pupils who are over- 
age, who are slow and who are both old and slow shows the inadequacy 
of either age or years-in-school alone as a measure of retardation, 
and the handicap under which those superintendents are working 
who have not the aid and support of a complete system of individual 
permanent record cards, so essential to the demands of modem 
supervision considered locally and entirely apart from any collective 
research such as this discussion. 

Even this sevenfold table does not tell the complete story of local 
and outside retardation, to determine both of which requires the 
correlation of each pupil's progress with the proportion of his total 
schooling received in the local public system and obtained elsewhere, 
a task which, while somewhat involved, is quickly accomplished by 
means of the mechanical tabulation of these statistics with electrical 



35 

machines. The detailed data for this type of correlation are already 
assembled for a number of cities in New York State and will doubtless 
be given to the superintendents early in the fall. 

Analysis of Progress by Grades 

The tables and discussions thus far presented in this paper refer 
to the progress percentages reported by communities in the form 
of one figure representing the per cent of all the pupils in one com- 
munity who were reported by that community as having made 
retarded or slow progress at the time the figures were collected. 
In tables 2 to 6 each community reported three figures, one for 
rapid progress, a second for normal progress and a third for its slo^^' 
progress per cent. The remaining tables have presented slow 
progress alone giving one percentage figure for each community with 
reference to the total retardation in that system and another per- 
centage figure with reference to the retardation which amounted to 
two or more years and were likewise for the entire school system. 

As the total slow-progress percentage of 32.4 for union free school 
districts with less than 100 elementary pupils gives no idea of the 
variety of conditions shown in the first column of table 11 where 
the slow progress ranges from 2 per cent to 76 per cent, so do all 
the slow-progress percentages for school systems as a whole fail to 
give any notion whatever of the variety of retardation conditions 
which exist within each of these 563 communities. 

The reports received from all these cities and villages had 
the information contained in them arranged separately by grades. 
On the basis of this division of each school system into the 
eight regular grades of the elementary schools, the tables which 
follow have been prepared, showing first for the State as a 
whole and subsequently for each of the nine groups based on the 
size of the elementary enrolment, the nimibers of pupils and per- 
centages of rapid, normal and slow progress, likewise separately 
tabulated for each grade. For example, the figures for the first 
grade in table 18 were obtained by adding together the figures 
for the first grades in all the 563 communities reporting. In the 
same manner the first grade figures in the nine tables reporting 
the nine groups of cities were obtained by adding first grade figures 
reported by the cities in each group. 

Figure 9 represents pupils in elementary schools arranged in 
eight coltmms to correspond to the eight regular grades. The 
shading in the columns indicates the relative amount of rapid. 



normal and slow progress in each grade, expressed in per cents. 
Each column represents loo per cent for each grade. The columns 
are of equal length to bring out the relative proportions of rapid, 
normal and slow progress in the different grades at a glance. This 
figure does not show the relative size of the different grades, as it 
is concerned with percentages alone and not with the ntunbers 
enrolled in each grade. There is no rapid progress reported in the 
first grade, but, beginning with the second grade, the rapid progress 
is seen to increase with each succeeding grade, through the eighth. 
The solid black shading indicating normal progress is affected by 
the increasing rapid-progress, and the slow-progress elements which 
increase from the start and reach a maximum in the fifth grade. 
The decrease in slow progress in the sixth, seventh and eighth is 
due to the withdrawal of retarded pupils from these grades as well 
as to improved school conditions, but the relative weight of these 
factors has not been studied in this research. The chief purpose 
of the diagram is to bring out the fact that there is a wide variation 
in the amount of rapid, normal and slow progress from grade to 
grade which is not revealed in an average or median figure for a 
community as a whole, and the careful determination and inter- 
pretation of these differences by the local superintendent are 
essential to the intelligent and effective analysis of the situation 
in each community. 

Table i8 

Progress percentages of 286,207 pupils in 41 cities, 29 villages and 493 union 

free school districts 



GRADE 


RAriD 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 






38 112 
28 026 
24 796 
21 599 
18 81S 
16 402 
13 875 
12 798 


7 SOI 

8 900 

8 120 

9 247 
8 990 
7 963 
6 126 
4 709 


841 
2 108 
2 325 

2 964 

3 109 
2 684 
I 693 
I 298 


154 
357 
631 
923 
I 053 
801 
416 
274 


19 

83 

180 

296 

306 

217 

67 

72 


10 
24 
41 
84 
58 
28 
II 


6 

8 
10 
19 

14 

12 

I 


8 531 
II 479 
II 309 
13 533 
13 222 
II 609 
8 314 
6 355 


46 643 
41 730 
39 018 
38 905 
36 497 
32 579 
27 043 
23 792 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


2 225 

2 917 

3 773 

4 152 
4 568 
4 854 
4 639 


Total.. 


27 128 


174 419 


61 556 


16 925 


4 608 


I 240 


259 


70 


84 660 


286 207 



Percentages 







81.69 
67.16 
63-54 
55-51 
51-55 
50.34 
51.31 
53-77 


16.07 
21.31 
20.81 
26.09 
24-63 
24-44 
22.65 
19-79 


1.8 

5-OS 

5-95 

7-62 

8.52 

7-94 

6.26 

5-46 


.33 
.852 
1. 617 
2.372 
2.885 
2.458 
1-53 
I. IS 


-047 

.198 

.461 

.76 

.838 

.666 

.247 

.300 


m-7 


.012 
.019 
.025 
.049 
.038 
.036 
.004 


18.3 

27-51 

28.98 

34-78 

37-07 

35-63 
30.74 
26.71 




2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


5-33 

7.47 
9.67 
11-37 
14.02 
17-94 
19.49 




057 

105 

215 

158 

088 

04 

08 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 


Total.. 


9.48 


60.94 


21. 51 


5-91 


1.608 


■ 433 


.091 


.025 


29-58 


100 



37 



Rapid, Normal & Slow Progress Percentages 
Reporfed By 5€>3 School S^itejA^ In 
New York ^tate Representing o.To^'al of 
2.66,207 Elementary Pupils 



More Than 
Progress 




Grades ~*1 



I 
I I 



Two ^BArs 



-SO 



One. Vceetr 

5 l6>vl/ 



-50 







Rapid 



4 5" 6 

Figure 9 



8«-GrQdes 



Table 19 

Progress percentages of 103,783 pupils in six cities with an elementary enrol- 
ment of over 5000 



GRADE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YE.\RS 
SLOW 


6 YE.\RS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 






IS 296 
10 604 
9 615 
8 181 
7 078 
6 150 
4 950 
4 501 


2 044 
2 769 

2 040 

3 019 
3 021 
2 982 
2 268 
I 706 


197 
483 
437 
906 
I 070 
981 
672 
424 


47 
75 
112 
302 
354 
311 
155 
109 


8 
18 
23 
87 
III 
91 
29 
42 


I 

6 

7 
26 
24 
6 
2 
I 


4 
2 

5 

4 
3 

I 


2 297 

3 354 

2 621 

4 345 
4 584 
4 374 

3 127 
2 282 


17 593 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


I 041 
I 302 
I 492 
I 576 
I 638 
I 814 
I 561 


14 999 

13 538 

14 018 
13 238 
12 162 

9 891 
8 344 


Total.. 


10 424 


66 375 


19 849 


5 170 


I 464 


409 


73 


19 


26 984 


103 783 



38 



Percentages 







86.94 
70.69 
71 .01 
58.36 
54-15 
50-56 
49 63 
53-94 


II. 6 

18.46 

15.07 

21. IS 

22.92 

21.94 

20.41 

15-87 


i-iS 
2-97 
4-05 
5 -24 
6-27 
4.81 
3-36 
2-28 


.302 
.508 
.885 
2.15 
1.94 
I . II 
.578 
-455 


.078 
.113 
-170 
-550 
.431 
.316 
.070 
.109 


.009 
.011 
-055 
. 106 
.101 
.014 


.011 
.011 
.047 
.013 


13-05 
2I-36 
19-36 
30.98 
34-11 
35 96 
31-87 
27-34 


100 


2 

3.. 

4 

5 

6 

7 

g 


7-94 
9-62 
10.64 
11.72 
13-46 
18.48 
18.71 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 






100 










Total.. 


10.04 


63.96 


19-10 


4-97 


1-4 


-393 


.070 


.018 


26 


100 



Table 20 

Progress percentages of 31,233 pupils in eight cities with an elementary enrol- 
ment from 3000 to 4999 



GRADE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


I 




3 873 
3 136 
2 862 

2 374 
2 068 
I 544 
I 417 
I 087 


736 
890 
I 004 
988 
935 
814 
484 
346 


79 
243 
286 
283 
3SS 
249 
104 

75 


10 
30 

6S 
86 
91 
68 
19 
19 


2 

8 

27 

19 

18 

25 

3 

3 


3 
3 

8 
3 
3 


I 
I 
I 
2 


828 
I I7S 
I 386 
I 386 
I 402 
I 159 

610 

443 


4 701 


3 

4 

5 

6 


276 
416 
60s 

747 
771 
904 
764 


4 587 
4 664 
4 365 
4 217 
3 474 
2 931 


8... 






2 294 










Total.. 


4 483 


18 361 


6 197 


I 674 


388 


lOS 


20 


5 


8 389 


31 233 



Percentages 







82-04 
68-36 
61-36 
54-38 
49 04 
44-44 
48-34 
47-38 


15-65 
20.05 
22.20 
23-SS 
22-26 
24-88 
17-68 
iS-28 


1-787 

5-66 

6-63 

7.01 

8-8r 

7-61 

3-55 

3-26 


.235 

.637 

1-475 

2-193 

2.36s 

1.983 

.73S 

-845 


.047 
. 196 
.653 
.487 
•474 
.781 
.116 
.148 


.023 
.073 
.073 
. 204 
.079 
-097 


.023 
.024 
-024 
-osi 


17-613 
25-621 
29-716 
31-752 
33-246 
33-362 

20.8t2 
19. 311 


100 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 


6.01 
8.91 
13.86 
17-71 
22-19 
30.84 
33-30 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 


8 






100 










Total. . 


14-35 


58-78 


19-84 


5-36 


1.242 


.336 


.064 


.016 


26.86 


100 



Table 21 

Progress percentages of 19,689 pupils in seven cities and one village with an 
elementary enrolment between 2000 and 2999 



GRADE 


R.A.PID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


00 
323 

337 
400 
393 

492 

424 
312 


2 645 

I 824 

I 610 

I 167 

I 229 

985 

843 

634 


493 
624 
734 
646 
634 
523 
382 
294 


49 
121 
214 
260 
198 
177 
112 

94 


6 

22 
76 
84 
74 
46 
42 
21 


I 

9 

21 
21 
29 
13 

4 
8 


I 
3 
9 

8 
6 

2 

I 


I 
I 

I 

4 
2 


551 
780 

I 054 
I 020 
945 
763 
S4I 
417 


3 196 

2 927 

3 001 
2 587 
2 567 
2 240 
I 808 
I 363 








Total.. 


2 681 


10 937 


4 330 


I 225 


371 


106 


30 


9 


6 071 


19 689 



39 



Percentages 



I 




82.8 
56.52 


15.43 
21.32 


I -534 
4-136 


.188 
-753 


.031 
.375 


031 
103 


.031 
-034 


17.245 
33.46 


100 


2 


10. 


100 


3 


11.23 


53.7 


24-45 


7-14 


2-532 


.700 


300 




35.122 


100 


4 


IS. 46 


45.15 


24-97 


10. OS 


3-247 


.813 


309 


■ 039 


39.428 


100 


s 


15.31 


47.84 


24.7 


7-72 


2.885 


I. 13 


234 


-156 


36.82s 


100 


6 


21.95 


44. 


23.34 


7.91 


2.053 


.581 


089 


.089 


34.062 


100 


7 


23-45 


46.6 


21 . 12 


6.20 


2.322 


.221 


05 s 




29.918 


100 


8 


22.90 


46.50 


21-57 


6-89 


1-54 


.587 . . - 






30.587 


100 










Total.. 


13.62 


55-55 


21-99 


6.22 


1.884 


-539 


152 


.046 


30.831 


100 



Table 22 

Progress percentages of 30,932 pupils in sixteen cities and eight villages with 
an elementary enrolment between 1000 and 1999 pupils 



GRADE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


S YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


I 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


000 
234 
376 
434 
462 
546 
510 
S6i 


3 87s 
2 971 
2 476 
2 269 
2 025 
I 845 
I 429 
I 228 


900 
I 001 
983 
I 02s 
964 
788 
620 

447 


143 
261 
386 
332 
362 
292 
179 
140 


24 
62 
114 
120 

143 

8S 

52 

23 


4 
13 
40 
61 
44 
II 
II 

3 



5 
5 

17 

14 

3 

I 




I 

3 
6 
2 
I 




I 072 
I 342 
I 531 
I 561 
I 529 
I 180 
863 
613 


4 947 
4 547 
4 383 
4 264 
4 016 
3 571 
2 802 
2 402 


Total.. 


3 123 


18 118 


6 728 


2 095 


623 


187 


45 


13 


9 691 


30 932 



Percentages 



I 


00.00 
5. IS 
8.58 
10.17 
11.50 
15.28 
18-20 
23-35 


78.38 
65-33 
56.47 
S3. 21 
50.40 
51.68 
51.00 
51.13 


18.19 
22.02 
22.41 
24.04 
24.00 
22.06 
22. 12 
18.61 


2.89 
S.74 
8.81 
7.79 
9.02 
8.18 
6.39 
5.83 


.485 
1.363 
2.601 
2.815 
3.564 
2.380 
1.8SS 

.957 


.08 
.286 
.913 
1.430 
1.095 
.308 
.392 

.125 


.000 
. no 
.114 
.399 
.349 
.084 
.036 
.000 




020 


21.62 
29.52 
34.95 
36.62 
38.10 
33.04 
30.80 
25.52 


100 


3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 




068 
141 
050 
028 
000 
000 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 


Total. . 


10.09 


58-57 


21.75 


6.772 


2.014 


.6m 


.145 


.042 


31.33 


100 



Table 23 

Progress percentages of 29,748 pupils in four cities, sixteen villages and twenty- 
eight union free school districts with an elementary enrolment between 500 
and 999 



GRADE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YE.'i.RS 

SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


I 




3 732 

2 787 
2 689 
2 222 
I 804 
I 708 
I 427 
I 197 


I 126 
I 036 

877 

I 054 
994 
808 
6S4 
532 


151 
279 
266 
447 
353 
256 
178 
146 


24 
36 
100 

137 
138 

102 

43 

28 


4 
12 
29 
SO 
30 
28 
5 
6 


6 

4 
6 


2 

I 
3 
2 

I 




I 313 
I 368 
I 282 
I 696 
I SI7 
I 196 
881 
712 


5 045 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


100 
160 
316 
381 
418 
433 
409 


4 255 
4 131 
4 234 
3 702 
3 322 
2 741 
2 318 








Total.. 


2 217 


17 566 


7 08 1 


2 076 


608 


164 


27 


9 


9 965 


29 74S 



40 



Percentages 







74 

65.2 
6s.i 
32. 5 
48.7 
SI. 3 
52.1 
31.7 


22.3 
24.3 
21 .2 
24.9 
26.8 
24-3 
23-9 

23 


3 


.48 
I. 31 

2.42 
3.24 
3.72 
3.06 
1.37 
I. 21 


.08 
.28 
.70 
I. 18 
.81 
.84 
.18 
.26 




26 

32.5 
30 -5 
40.1 
41. 1 
36.2 
32.1 
30.7 




3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


2.3 
3.9 

4.7 
10.2 
12. 5 

15.6 
17.6 


6 
6 
10 
9 
7 
6 
6 


5 
4 
5 
7 
9 
5 

7 


.09 
.17 
.14 
.03 
.06 
.04 


.02 
.06 
.05 
.03 




100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 












Total . . 


7-3 


59-3 


23.6 


7 


2. II 


.55 


.09 


.03 


33.4 


100 



Table 24 

Progress percentages of 22,049 pupils in three villages and sixty-one union 
free school districts with an elementary enrolment between 300 and 499 



GR.\DE 


R.^PID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


S YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


I 




2 690 
2 155 
I 799 
I 778 
I 530 
I 299 
I 131 
I 292 


729 
719 
750 
801 

758 

549 
504 
202 


86 
213 
235 
244 
275 
204 
155 
126 


17 

37 
51 
78 
94 
87 
33 
16 


7 
17 
28 
38 
22 

4 
3 


I 

I 
I 

8 

5 
2 


I 
I 




833 

977 

I 05s 

I 160 

I 172 

864 

696 

347 


3 523 
3 179 

2 961 

3 IIO 
2 89s 
2 416 
2 040 
I 925 


2 

3 

4 

5 

6 


47 
107 
172 
193 
253 
213 
286 


8 












Tr.taL. 


I 271 


13 674 


5 012 


I 538 


413 


119 


18 


4 


7 104 


22 049 



Percentages 







76 A 


20.70 
22 .60 
25.32 
25.74 
26.20 
22.72 
24.70 
10.48 


2.44 
6.70 
7.93 
7.8s 
9.50 
8.45 
7.60 
6.53 


.48 
1. 16 
1.72 
2.51 
3.25 
3.60 
1 .62 

.83 


.22 

.57 

.90 

1.31 

.91 

. 196 

.156 


.028 
.031 
.034 
.257 
.173 
.083 


.034 
.032 
.069 


23.648 

30.711 

35.618 

37.289 

40.50 

35.763 

34.116 

17.996 




2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 


1.48 
3.61 
5-53 
6.67 
10.47 
10.44 
14.84 


67 
60 
57 
52 
53 
55 
67 


8 
8 
2 
9 
8 
5 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 


8 


















Total.. 


5.77 


62 


22.71 


6.98 


1.87 


.54 


.082 


.018 


32.20 


100 



Table 25 

Progress percentages of 18,979 pupils in one village and seventy-six union free 
school districts with an elementary enrolment between 200 and 299 



GRADE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YE-iVRS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOT.\L 


I 




2 293 

I 759 
I 542 
I 481 
I 277 
I 178 
I 059 
985 


740 
675 

686 

644 

690 

624 

495 

. 452 


81 
213 
180 
171 
193 
150 
122 
125 


9 

37 
39 
38 
42 
35 
26 
25 








830 
931 
914 
867 
937 
816 
644 
602 


3 123 
2 741 
2 503 

2 449 
2 334 
2 no 
I 896 
I 823 


-, 


51 
47 
101 
120 
116 
193 
236 


6 

7 

10 

II 
5 

■ I 






3 

4 

5 

6 

7 


2 
3 
I 
2 


I 


8 














Total.. 


864 


II 574 


5 006 


I 235 


251 


40 


8 


I 


6 541 


18 979 



, 41 



Percentages 



T 




1.86 
1.87 

4.12 

5 -14 

S-S 

10.18 

12.94 


73-5 
64.2 
61. 5 
60.4 
54-7 
55-9 
55-9 
49.1 


23.7 
24.6 

27.4 

28 

29-5 

29.6 

26. 1 

24.8 


2-59 
7.77 
7.18 
6.98 
8.27 
7.12 
6.44 
6.86 


2.88 
1-35 
1.56 
1-55 
1.80 
1.66 
1-37 
1-37 








26.257 
33-946 
36 . 498 
37.10 
30.085 
38.682 
33.963 
33 -03 




-> 


.219 
■ 279 
.408 
-472 
-237 
.053 








3- 
4- 
5- 
6. 


.079 
. 122 
.043 
-095 


-04 


100 
100 
100 
100 


8. 


















To 


tr.' . 


4-S6 


61 


26.4 


6.18 


6. SI 


.132 


.042 


.005 


41-057 


100 



Table 26 

Progress percentages of 18,351 pupils in 153 union school districts with an 
elementary enrolment between 100 and 199 



GR.-VDE 


RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOT.-*L 


I 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


000 
76 
63 

120 

154 
193 
222 
250 


2 428 

I 774 

I 367 
I 304 
I 008 
981 
972 
I 256 


337 
820 
694 
613 
632 
543 
450 
441 


14 
205 
215 
200 
199 
182 
104 

95 


45 
48 
55 
82 
48 
30 
16 


7 
15 
12 
16 
18 

9 
3 


2 

7 
I 
4 
7 
5 


I 

I 
I 

6 


351 
I 080 
979 
882 
934 
804 
598 
555 


2 779 
2 930 
2 409 
2 306 
2 096 
I 978 

1 792 

2 061 


Total . . 


I 078 


II 090 


4 530 


I 214 


324 


80 


26 


9 


6 183 


18 351 



Percentages 





2.34 
2.6x 

5-21 

7-35 

9-76 

12.39 

12.13 


87-4 

61 .4 

56.75 

56-6 

48-15 

49-65 

54-25 

60.8 


12 . 12 

27 .20 

28.8 

26.57 

30.15 

27.45 

25.12 

21.4 


-54 
7-29 
8-93 
8.68 
9.50 
9.21 
5-81 
4.61 


















12.66 

35-777 

40.675 

38.437 

44-553 

40.658 

33-381 

26.915 




2. . . . 

3 

4..-. 
5- • - ■ 
6.... 
7.... 
8 


I 
I 
2 
3 
2 
I 


55 
99 
58 
91 

43 
67 
•76 




387 
623 
521 
754 
911 
502 




041 
290 
043 
191 
354 
279 




042 
042 
043 
048 
303 


100 
100 
100 
100 
100 












-ri^ 








Total 


5.82 


60.8 


24.44 


6.5 


1-78 


.442 


. 140 


-05 


33-352 


100 



Table 27 

Progress percentages of 11,443 pupils in 175 union free school districts with 
an elementary enrolment below 100 



GRADl 


: RAPID 


NORMAL 


I YEAR 
SLOW 


2 YEARS 
SLOW 


3 YEARS 
SLOW 


4 YEARS 
SLOW 


5 YEARS 
SLOW 


6 YEARS 
SLOW 


TOTAL 
SLOW 


TOTAL 


1. . . . 

2. . . . 
3.-.. 

4.... 

6.'.'.'. 
7.--. 
S.... 


77 
109 
133 
126 
141 
141 
260 


I 280 
I 016 
832 
823 
796 
712 
647 
618 


396 
366 
352 

457 
362 
332 
269 
289 


41 

90 

106 

121 

104 

96 

67 

73 


17 
13 
26 
23 

35 
19 
16 

17 


3 

I 
8 
9 
4 
I 
4 


I 

7 

2 
I 
I 


I 


456 
472 
487 
616 
510 
453 
354 
384 


I 736 
I 565 

I 428 

I 572 
I 432 
I 306 
I 142 
I 262 


Total 


987 


6 724 


2 823 


698 


166 


30 


12 


I 


3 732 


II 443 



42 



Percentages 



I 

2. . . 
3... 

4... 


4-92 
7.6l 
8.47 
8.8 
10.8 
12. 35 

20.6 




■70 S 


2 ^<s 


.979 
.831 
1.86 
1.46 

2.44 
1-45 
1-4 
1-35 






.o?8 




26.26 
30.15 
34 08 
39-20 
35-60 
34-67 
3100 
30.42 


100 


64 
58 

52 

55 
54 
56 
49 


9 

3 

35 

6 

5 

63 


23 
24 
29 
25 
25 
23 
22 


38 
67 
06 

27 
41 

55 
9 


5 

7 
7 
7 
7 
5 
5 


75 
46 
70 
27 
35 
87 
78 




192 
072 
509 
628 
306 
088 
317 




092 


100 
100 




445 


100 
100 


6... 

7 ■ • • 
8... 




153 
088 
079 


100 
100 
100 


Tota 


1.. 8.62 


58.75 


24.65 


6.1 


1-45 


.263 


■ 105 




32.62 


100 



Table 28 

Grades reporting lowest, highest and " middle " slow-progress percentages 



ELEMENT.^RY ENROLMENT 



GRADE 
IN WHICH 

LOWEST 
PER CENT 

OCCURS 



GRADE 
IN WHICH 

HIGHEST 
PER CENT 

OCCURS 



GRADES IN 
WHICH THE 
TWO MIDDLE 
PER CENTS 
OCCUR 



Over 5000 

3000-4999 

2000-2999 

IOOO-I999 

500- 999 

300- 499 

200- 299 

100- 199 

Below 100 



7 and 3 
2 and 3 

8 and 6 
7 and 6 
7 and 2 
7 and 3 
2 and 7 
2 and 4 
7 and 3 



In addition to showing the number of rapid, normal and slow- 
progress pupils, tables i8 to 27 give the numbers and percentages 
of pupils who are reported as being retarded for i year, 2 years, 
3 years up to 6 years or more of slow progress. 

Table 28 shows for each group of communities which grade had 
the lowest percentage of slow progress, the highest percentage and 
the two grades of the eight which had the middle percentages for 
the whole elementary system. In every group except one the 
first grade reports the lowest slow percentage, doubtless due to the 
fact that promotion from the first into the second grade depends 
rather upon the fact that the child had spent a year in the first 
grade than upon an^^ exacting test of mental achievement. The 
greatest amount of retardation is reported in the fifth grade in 
five of the nine groups. The remaining four groups being divided 
equally between the sixth and fourth grades for maximum retardation. 

No statewide statistical computations are necessary to inform 
the superintendent that the fifth grade is apparently the most 
difficult, and it is not for this purpose that these tables have been 
prepared. They will, however, show each superintendent exactly 
how much retardation was reported by all the communities of 
comparable size, for each of the eight grades. By comparing these 



43 

composite tables with his copy of the report sent to this Department 
in May 19 17, the superintendent or grade supervisor can see at 
a glance just where his schools stand with reference to the total of 
his particular group of school systems. The State Department of 
Education will send to any Superintendent or principal who has 
not a duplicate of his report, a copy of the figures for May 1917. 
Superintendents who have occasion to give^ this matter attention 
are reminded that the fall term is the time best adapted to the 
collecting of retardation data and that the Department is ready to 
aid in this work at all times. "^ 

The information required for each pupil in the regular eight grades 
of the elementary school in making an age-progress survey, is as 
follows : 

1 The date of birth 

2 The date of entrance into the first grade (not kindergarten) 

3 The number of terms (one-half years) of schooling received and 
grades or half grades completed in each of the following school 
locations : 

a School where registered 

b Other local public schools 

c Local parochial or private schools 

d Any schools in other cities 

e Schools in foreign countries 

4 Grades or half grades skipped or doubly promoted 

5 Grades repeated or doubly repeated 

6 Note of extraordinary circumstances favorable to progress 

7 Note of extraordinary circiimstances unfavorable to progress 

Superintendents contemplating an age-progress canvass of their 
schools during the next two or three years will greatly lessen the 
labor of this task by installing an adequate system of pupils indi- 
vidual permanent record cards, securing at the time as much of 
the above information as it is possible to obtain, and entering it 
on each pupil's card. Where individual record cards are already 
in use, the above items should be added to the existing record and 
an effort should consistently be made to obtain as much of this 
information as possible for pupils who come into the system from 
cities not keeping these individual school histories. 

Many superintendents declare that to secure this array of detailed 
information is a practicable impossibility except for pupils who 
have always been in the local s^^stem, and when attempts are made 



44 



to fill in these figures from the statements of pupils and parents 
that the replies given are so inaccurate and unreliable as to be 
valueless or at least not worth the efforts expended in securing them. 
While there is some measure of truth in this viewpoint, the 
objectionable features of the problem are largely eliminated by- 
giving the teachers and principals plenty of time to look up doubtful 
cases and question pupils individually. The factor of uncertainty 
is reduced by certain relations which must necessarily obtain between 
the dates called for, the grades covered and the occurrence of 
retardation and skipping. While this detailed type of research 
has not been statewide, it has been made in several of the larger 
cities of the State where this problem of uncertainty with reference 
to previous schooling would be the greatest, and in these cases, 
while the absence of definite records frequently compelled teachers 
and principals to resort to estimates of this past schooling, they 
felt that these approximations carefully worked out for individual 
pupils were not far from the actual truth and constituted a record 
which was far more valuable than no record at all. 



INDIVIDUAL 

AGE AND PROGRESS RECORD 



DATE OF BIRTH 



NAME 








Month 


Year 


LOCATION 


-J years of 
schooling 


Grades 
completed 


Entered Month Year 

first 

grade 


EXTRA HALF YEAR 
CREDITS EARNED 








Algebra 


Latin 




Grade entered 

Sept. or Feb. 191 . . . 
















public schools 


Commercial 


Science 


OR 

Grade completed 
Jan. or June 191 .. . 


Local 
parochial schools 










Any out of town 
schools. U. S. 






Grades repeated and cir- 
cumstances unfavorable 
to progress 


Grades skipped and cir- 
cumstances favorable 
to progress 


In foreign 
countries 








Protracted, 
absence 








Total 






Rating (To be filled in at the central office on all 
slips at the same time) 








yrs. Normal age . . 

Over 


. . . yrs. Norm 
Slow 


al prog. 



45 



: 1 

In3 








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46 



Individual Age-progress Slip 

The blank shown on page 44 has been found to be the most con- 
venient among several forms used during 19 17-18 in several cities 
and villages in New York State for collecting the original information 
from the schools. Note- that this blank is not a pupil's permanent 
record card. It is merely a form for gathering at one particular 
time all salient features of the pupil's schooling just previous to his 
entry into or immediately after his completion of a given grade. 

The normal age for beginning each grade as adopted by the super- 
intendents of New York State has already been indicated on page 30. 
These ages are figured as of the pupil's nearest birthday as follows: 



Age — September 75, iqiS 
Dates of birth used in com- 
puting ages 

6-15-1913 to 12-14-1913. . 
12-15-1912 to 6-14-1913.. 

6-15-19T2 to 12-14-1912. . 
12-15-1911 to 6-14-1912.. 

6-15-1911 to 12-14-1911.. 
12-15-1910 to 6-14-1911.. 

6-15-1910 to 12-14-1910. . 
I 2-1 5-1 909 to 6-14-1910.. 

6-15-1909 to 12-14-1909. . 



12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 

6-15- 
12-15- 



908 to 6-14- 
908 to 12-14- 
907 to 6-14- 
907 to 12-14- 
906 to 6-14- 
906 to 12-14- 
905 to 6-14- 
905 to 12-14- 
904 to 6-14- 

904 to 12-14- 
903 to 6-14- 
903 to 12-14- 
902 to 6-14- 
902 to 12-14- 
901 to 6-14- 
901 to 12-14- 
900 to 6-14- 



909. 
908. 
908. 
907. 
907. 

906. 
906. 

905- 
905- 

904. 
904. 
903- 
903- 

902. 
902. 
901 . 
901 . 



Example: Any pupil whose date of birth falls 
between June 15, 1913 and December 14, 
IQ13 is considered 5 years of age, etc. 

5 years 

5^ ■ 

6 

61 

7 

7i 



9\ 
10 
io| 
II 
III 
12 
12I 
13 
13I 

'4, 

14! 

15 

15I 

16 

i6i 

17 

17I 



Conclusion 

From the nimiber of years in school reported by the superintendents 
and supervising principals of the State as of May 21, 19 17 for pupils 
we may conclude that the schools as a whole report that 30 per 
cent of the pupils at the time of the survey had been going to school 
one or more years longer than the time usually required to place 
_ them in the grades in which they were found. 



47 

When examined separately for groups of schools based on 
elementary enrolment, these years in school reports show that 

1 The extra time in school affects the greatest percentage of the 
total niimber of pupils in the union free school districts having 
an elementary enrolment between 200 and 299 pupils where the 
percentage of pupils thus reported to have spent more time in school 
than the normal period, is 34 per cent. 

2 City school systems enrolling over 5000 elementary pupils 
report the least number of pupils having spent extra time in school, 
the proportion of the total number of pupils being 26 per cent. 

Because the data were collected near the close of the school year 
before the June promotions, the figures submitted by the super- 
intendents and principals do not include two classes of pupils: 
(i) those who dropped out of school for various reasons and in 
particular those who gave it up as a bad job before May 21, 19 17, 
and (2) those who were not promoted in June as a result of the fact 
that they were not prepared to enter the next higher grade in Sep- 
tember 19 17. These features^ together with other less important 
statistical discrepancies such as the omission of age data and reporting 
the schooling of midyear entrants by numbers representing whole 
school years, make it impossible to consider these reported extra 
years in school and the resulting percentages of the total ntimber 
of pupils affected as synonymous with actual retardation. 

Measured in a manner reliably to determine actual retardation, 
ten cities found that this condition affected 4.4 per cent more of 
their total enrolment than the proportion of pupils reported to have 
received extra schooling according to the method used throughout 
the State. While for these reasons the statewide years in school 
figures can not be used for exact comparison with communities 
throughout the country, they constitute, owing to the large number 
of communities reported and to a certain degree of uniformity 
which may safely be assumed in these reports, a valuable measure 
for superintendents and principals in locating the position of their 
local systems among others of comparable size in New York State. 

Reported retardation and intelligence. Applying a very loose 
construction to the reported number of years in school in excess 
of the number normally required to place a pupil in a given grade 
as indicating a proportionate amount of retardation, we should 
obtain a self-made picture of the pupils in the elementary schools 
of the State which would take the form of figure 11. In this diagram 
the great mass of the children are making normal progress (6 1 per cent) 
and at the bottom of the high column there are two short columns 



48 

at the right representing about 9 per cent of the pupils who are making 
rapid progress. To the left of the center normal-progress column 
four columns represent pupils who have made one, two, three, four, 
five and six years slow progress through the elementary grades as 
far as they had gone at the time of the survey. After considering 
the 2 1 and 6 per cent represented by the i year-slow and 2 year-slow, 
columns, we might regard the small proportion of the total pupils 
who are reported three to six years slow as practicabh^ negligible so far 
as being a cause of any " alarm " about the welfare of the entire 
pupil body. 

The schools then say that of every ten pupils in the elementary 
schools one is ahead of his grade, six are progressing normally and 
three are behind the procession. In general terms, the schools 
may be said to have their pupils in these proportions. 

Let us glance at a similar diagram representing the distribution 
of " 1000 unselected children " according to the Stanford revision 
and extension of the Binet-Simon intelligence scale, figure 12. Here 
we find the minds of the children themselves represented in quite 
a different looking distribution than the arrangement in figure 11, 
based on where the schools " have " the children. On this particular 
basis of supposedly measurable intelligence we find a center area 
of 55.5 per cent of the total represented as possessing normal intelli- 
gence. This column is flanked on the left by areas representing, 
respectively, relatively low intelligence in the proportions 20 per cent, 
8.6, 2.3 etc., based on so-called "inteUigence quotas" or the ratio of 
mental age to physical age. The groups indicated at the bottom of the 
figure signify: 14.35^ per cent dull but not feeble-minded, 5.45 per 
cent borderline cases, 1.48 per cent definitely feeble-minded, or 
21.28 per cent below normal. 

Note that these percentages of something the matter with the 
children's minds are much smaller than those in figure 1 1 expressing 
something the matter with their progress through school. Many 
students of these problems question the validity of this intelligence 
scale, and this paper emphatically questions the vahdity of the 
reported years in school and the resulting progress per cents shown 
in figure 11. But the objectors to the intelligence scale tend to 
reduce the number of mentally defective children, while the cor- 
rection of the progress scale would increase the number of children 
retarded in the schools. In other words, there appears to be less 
trouble with their minds and more trouble with their schooling than 
these figures would indicate on their face value. 

1 Figures obtained by taking halves of adjacent columns. 



49 



61% 




7Yr. 
Sfow 



Progress Rapid 



2.Yr5. ; Over 

Rop/d ; avri. 

' Rapid 



Figure ii 

Rapid, normal and slow progress of 286,207 elementary pupils in 563 public 
school systems in New York State 

This figure shows where the schools have the children located with reference 
to the normal advancement of one grade a year. Note that relatively a larger 
number of pupils are found on the slow side of the normal than in the portion 
of the diagram representing rapid pupils. 



50 



Proceeding to the right-hand part of the diagrams, we have in 
the school -progress figure but lo per cent of the total who are 
accelerated, while the intelligence diagram shows three gradations, 
two of which are of very considerable relative dimensions: 16.05^ per 
cent of superior intelHgence, 5.92 -per cent of very superior intelli- 
gence, .28 per cent "near genius" and genius, 22.25 above normal 
intelligence. However little one may care for this alleged intelligence 
scale or whatever opinion of its reliability is entertained, it is more 
in keeping with hundreds of other studied factors of biological 




75 

70 80 



Definite 


Bor- 


DuW- 


Feeblemind- 


der- 


r)ess 


edness 


line. 




1 .48% 


5.45 


14.35 



90 



Mormal 
Intelligence 

55.5 

Figure 12 



lis 126 
Super- 



m H5" 



I or 



16.5 



If 

Very Superior Near- 
Intel licence 



5.92 



Gen/us 
.28 



Intelligence distribution of 1000 unselected children 

This figure should be examined in connection with figure 11. Note that so 
far as the children's minds are concerned: (i) the number below normal is con- 
siderably less than the proportion of children whose progress through school 
is below normal as shown in figure 11, and (2) that the number of children who 
appear in any way to be mentally slow is more than counterbalanced by the 
number of children of corresponding degrees of mental superiority. This is 
in marked contrast to the relatively few children who are making rapid progress 
through school. This figure is a modified form of a diagram in " The Measure- 
ment of Intelligence " by Lewis M. Terman, published by the Macmillan Com- 
pany and reproduced here with the permission of the author and the publishers. 
Together figures 11 and 12 would appear to show that there is consderably 
more trouble with the children's schooling than there is with their minds and 
that whatever is the matter with their schooling is quite out of proportion to 
anything wrong with their minds. 

1 Figures obtained by taking halves of adjacent columns. 



5' 



research for the "intelligence quota" to be normal in the " middle 
half " of all the children and then to be higher in a few groups, rapidly 
decreasing in one direction with an almost equal proportion of low 
quotas in a few groups rapidly decreasing in the opposite direction, 
than the exceedingly irregular distribution of the school-progress 
diagram with only one-tenth of the children exceptionally favorably 
situated, an excess of normal progress and at least one-half again 
as many behind in school as are backward in intelligence. 

Reported retardation and physical defects. A report from a single 
village school system with 518 pupils in grades i to 6 inclusive 
shows the following table which, while "proving nothing because 
it is only one village," is interesting in demonstrating that physical 
defects are present among retarded pupils but are by no means 
limited to that group. 

Table 29 
Under, normal and overage and physical defects 





WITHOUT 
PHYSICAL 
DEFECTS 


WITH 
PHYSICAL 
DEFECTS 


TOTAL 


PERCENTAGES 


GROUP OF PUPILS 


With- 
out 
defects 


With 
defects 


Total 




22 
69 
21 


79 

258 

69 


lOI 

327 

90 


4.2 
133 
4 


15.2 

50 

13-3 


19.4 
63.3 
17-3 








Total 


112 


406 


518 


21. S 


78.5 


100 



The above table shows the distribution of physical defects among 
underage, normal and overage pupils. Note that in this 
particular school system there are more children with- physical 
defects among those who are underage than among the overage 
children both numerically and relatively. Note further that of 
406 pupils with defects, 337 or 83 per cent, are of normal age 
or young for their grades. The actual significance of physical 
defects as influencing retardation is of course not brought out 
at all in this table. The proper statistical correlation requires 
a detailed examination of individual school-progress and physical 
record^ cards. The problem is further complicated b}^ the fact 
that while each pupil has but one rating with reference to progress, 
he may have several different physical defects. This is, however, 
readily accomplished by means of mechanical tabulation and it is 
hoped that a limited research of this type will be ready for dis- 
tribution in the fall. 



52 

The achievements of pupils with standard classroom tests would 
result in still other distributions of the children. In school systems 
where these tests are used, the results when diagrammed show the 
large columns of average ability with shorter columns of superior 
and low ability tapering off in either direction from the center normal. 
We appear to have this general form of distribution in about every- 
thing that we subject to definite measurement both in physical 
and in mental growth. The place where we find children in school, 
however, appears to depart radically from any form of distribution 
which could be called normal and there are surely plenty of factors 
contributing to this resulting statistical discrepancy, that is, to 
the 30 per cent slow-progress group as opposed to the 10 per cent 
rapid-progress element. Absence from school, late entrance, trans- 
ferring back and forth between public and parochial schools, physical 
defects, often the demands of the curriculum itself and other causes 
already enumerated in this paper continue to reduce the rapid- 
progress element and augment the slow-progress groups. As already 
stated, there is no criticism expressed or implied in the general 
slow-progress conditions in which a superintendent happens to find 
the children in his public schools. The first step in the solution 
of any problem of this sort is to determine just how large a problem 
it is and whether the situation in a given locality differs materially 
from the situation throughout the State, particularly in the group 
of comparable sizes, to see the direction in which the difference 
tends and finally to examine the local system with such scrutiny, 
as time and available clerical help will permit and as far as possible 
to apply the known standards so far as that relatively recent branch 
of science has been developed. 

Preventive and Remedial Measures 

The query naturally arises, now that we have this information 
about nonpromotion. What is to be done about it? In several 
places, notably in Rochester, N. Y., considerable attention has 
been given to the preventive and remedial measures used by ele- 
mentary teachers against retardation. It is significant to note that 
where teachers have reported in detail their efforts to reduce re- 
tardation, they have enumerated measures all of which should be 
employed by every good teacher in her regular work with normally 
successful pupils as well as with those in danger of nonpromotion. 
There is indeed little doubt that the most effective way to reduce 
retardation ig to improve the teaching itself, and this is already the 
superintendent's constant problem. 



53 

Many cities have certain features in their organization, which, 
entirely apart from the effort to improve the effectiveness of the 
instruction in the regular classroom, make it easier to grapple with 
the retardation problem and have been of material assistance in 
reducing its effects. These special features in the organization of 
the school and of the whole local system do not apply to pupils 
who are making normal or rapid progress, but to retarded pupils 
and those in danger of nonpromotion, and for this reason they may 
be called preventive and remedial measures with more propriety 
than those which ought to be a feature of the effective and success- 
ful teaching of all pupils. It is planned to make these measures 
the subject of a later bulletin. A tentative list of some of these 
measures is given by way of illustration. 

1 Primarily concerning the teaching 

a Those which allow the pupil repeating the grade to remain with 
the class which is regularly taking the grade for the first time. The 
remedial work is "performed by the teacher in the course of her 
regular instruction, and the retarded pupil is supposed to have the 
chance of finishing the grade with the rest of the class. 

b Those which involve the services of an assistant working in the 
classroom with the regular teacher. 

c Those which involve a temporary transfer to a special class 
and a prospective return to the regular grade in time to complete 
it with the class at the close of the term. 

d Those which involve a transfer to a special class with a return 
to regular work some time after the class from which the transfer 
was made has completed the work of that grade. 

(i) Ungraded classes (4) Classes for atypical pupils 

(2) Foreign classes (5) Open-air classes 

(3) Special catch-up classes 

e Those which involve the substitution of a modified, though regu- 
larly graded, course of study in place of the regular elementary 
curriculum. 

/ Those which involve a transfer to another sort of school or 
institution which substitutes a special curriculum for that of the 
graded school. 

2 Primarily concerning the administration of the school 

Those which relate to the principal's office and to the school 
district as a unit rather than to the instruction in the classroom. 
The keeping and actual use of special individual records of scholar- 
ship, health and standard test results; special features of organiza- 
tion within the school and of cooperation with the home. 



54 



3 Primarily concerning the administration in the entire local school system 
Those which relate to the department as a whole and to coopera- 
tion with other city departments and organizations. Analysis of 
retardation records of schools and use of data in the supervisory 
program. Employment of clerk or estabhshment of a bureau of 
research and educational measurement. Cooperation with all city 
departments having to do with children. Study of the methods 
used in other cities of comparable size. 



REF£R£f/C£ BURE/tU 




RECORDS 



ffEse/iifcH 



RCcOMKmmms 



Figure 13 



SCHOOL /?rrr/?rNC£- /ind /^£5r/jRCH bure/iu 



SCHOOLS or THE COUNTRY 




LOCRL PUBLIC 



Figure 14 



55 

The functions of such a reference and research bureau, as suggested 
in figures 13 and 14 and as given in greater detail in the following 
outline, may in small systems be carried out with the aid of a clerk 
without any additional formal organization in the superintendent's 
office. In any case, such a bureau should be either part of the 
superintendent's office or under his direction and should serve the 
board through the superintendent, to whom as Chief Executive 
Officer of the Board of Education all other officers and employees, 
excepting only the board members themselves, are subordinate. 

RESEARCH AND EFFICIENCY BUREAU 

EDUCATIONAL DIVISION 

A PROPOSED PLAN 

Why an educational division of the proposed research and efficiency 
bureau is needed: 
I. School board members need to have in the briefest summary form the 
contents, significance and trustworthiness of all reports issued by employees of 
the board. 

I . School board members need to know what is going on in schools throughout 
the country as presented in current literature and reports of other cities. 

3. School board members frequently need information already collected and 
in the files but not published in any report, or a presentation of data from some 
standpoint not used in any report. 

4. The board wishes all directing employees to keep in touch with what is 
being done by the schools in other parts of the country, public and private, and 
also with best foreign practice. 

5. The board wishes to protect all employees from unnecessary clerical work 
in answering requests for information from officers within the system and from 
out-of-town inquirers, whom the board nevertheless wishes to oblige. 

6. The board wishes local schools to benefit by all the findings of researches 
to which they have contributed by supplying information. 

7. The board often needs to investigate a special problem or situation inde- 
pendently from existing reports. 

8. The board needs a current guarantee that all offices at headquarters and 
in schools are being conducted in an up-to-date and efficient manner. 

9. The board needs to know at all times public opinion, criticism and suggestion 
relating to the city's schools. 

10. The board wishes to keep the public in close touch with the achievements 
of the school system. 

To meet these needs, an educational division of the proposed research and 
efficiency bureau is suggested, to consist of the following departments, with 
functions as indicated: 

Department Function 

1. Records and reports To have custody of all local reports. 

To keep records of state regents examinations. 

To keep records concerning progress through school 

for each school and grade; single, double, trial 

promotions ; non-promotions ; e-xamination results. 
To have charge of teachers' register and card 

system. 
To have charge of correspondence files. 
To have charge of clipping files. 
To have charge of office library, including reports 

and publications. 

2, Statistics To tabulate data. 

To prepare statistical matter for annual reports, 
charts and graphs. 



S6 



019 822 075 9 



To prepare statistical summaries for board and 

supervising officers. 
To compile per capita cost of each school, each 

school department, supplies, unit costs of courses 

of instruction, etc. 

3. Information To assort for ready call all available information 

about Buffalo schools. 

(a) For board members. 

(b) To supply facts to members of school 
system, guarding individual schools against 
time-consuming requests. 

(c) To supply out-of-town inquirers (question- 
air es, from individuals, institutions. State 
Education Department, U. S. Bureau of 
Education, etc.) directly from files, thereby 
guarding office heads against time intrusion. 

(d) To supply local inquirers with informa- 
tion, to protect office heads and employees 
against avoidable loss of time. 

To follow up and get results of researches to which 
local schools have contributed. 

To collect educational information from other cities. 

To request or subscribe for educational periodicals, 
bulletins, annual reports, etc. 

4. Suggestions and com- 
plaints To investigate and report to the board all sugges- 
tions and complaints addressed to that body and 
its employees. 

5. Routine and forms To secure blank forms and sample records of other 

city school departments. 
To examine continually and to recommend improve- 
ments in routine of offices and in forms and 
blanks used for collecting and recording necessary 
information — to facilitate collection of data, to 
increase its usefulness, and to protect employees 
from unnecessary requests for information. 

6. Publicity and clipping 

service To have general charge of the preparation of all 

publications of the school department. 

To have charge of newspaper pubhcity. 

To have charge of work connected x^'ith conven- 
tions, entertainments of visiting educators, etc. 

7. Appraisal and research. . . To collect, compile and analyze special data for 

board of education and for supervisory officers, 

such as salary schedules, rules and regulations of 

school boards, teachers' examinations, etc. 
To analyze local and outside records and reports, 

dealing with costs of instruction, results, methods, 

retardation, elimination, etc. 
To conduct educational efficiency tests, such as 

tests in spelling, writing, arithmetic, reading, etc. 
To prepare educational efficiency indices for school 

system. 
To prepare digests, charts and graphs dealing with 

educational matters. 



As the writer is engaged in war work at Washington, D. C, full information 
relating to blank forms, charts and tabulations of Age Progress statistics for 
superintendents desiring to have this work done outside, additional copies of this 
handbook, samples of blanks used in school surveys, etc. may be obtained by 
addressing Mr. F. E. Shapleigh, Public Education Association, 706 Niagara 
Life Building, Buffalo, N. Y. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



019 822 075 9 



